MMA News

Adam Martin - May 24, 2019

The UFC has parted ways with one of its top-15 ranked heavyweights, Justin Willis, according to a report from TSN’s Aaron Bronsteter. The heavyweight was recently removed from the promotion’s official top-15 rankings and now we know why. Willis is now a free agent and free to sign with any other promotion.

Tom Taylor - May 24, 2019

There’s recently been a lot of talk about the potential Octagon return of Conor McGregor. From the looks of it, that return will have to wait, as the Irish MMA star has sustained an arm injury. McGregor announced this setback, which he implied is the result of ‘intense training and sparring sessions’ in a Friday afternoon post to his official Instagram account.

Natasha Hooper - May 24, 2019

As the UFC continues to grow in popularity, new doors open for both competitors and fans. One of the sectors that has seen the most growth is women’s mixed martial arts. Pioneers such as Ronda Rousey and Rose Namajunas have paved the way for future athletes and turned women’s MMA into a mainstream attraction. So what does the future have in store for women’s MMA? BBC Sport recently unpacked teh topic with UFC stars Molly McCann and Valentina Shevchenko to get their thoughts on the topic.

Tom Taylor - May 24, 2019

Rashad Evans, who will soon be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame, has retired from MMA competition. That being said, he’s become a staple of the broadcast desk on UFC fight nights, where he provides excellent analysis of the action set to unfold in the cage. Speaking on SiriusXM, Rashad Evans flaunted his aptitude for high quality analysis, breaking down a potential heavyweight rematch between light heavyweight rivals Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier.

Tom Taylor - May 24, 2019

Former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley says he has learned a valuable lesson by watching the career of reigning light heavyweight champ Jon Jones — one MMA’s most polarizing athletes. It’s all about embracing chaos.

Tom Taylor - May 24, 2019

Former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor has recently called for a rematch with his latest foil Khabib Nurmagomedov. Yet the undefeated Russian isn’t the only former opponent the Irish star is interested in rematching. He’s also keen on a do-over with undefeated pugilist Floyd Mayweather, who he lost to in a blockbuster boxing match in 2017. “I would love another go in the boxing arena,” Conor McGregor told motivational speaker Tony Robbins recently, assessing Mayweather’s seemingly unbeatable style (transcript via MMA Weekly). “Floyd is known for his Philly-shell defensive style of fighting. He has his right arm tucked in, or he’s orthodox so it’s the opposite, but he has one arm tucked in by his belly and one arm kept up by his ear. He uses his shoulder to deflect shots. He’s a back footed fighter, he fights on the back foot.

Tom Taylor - May 24, 2019

Shortly after Colby Covington won the UFC interim welterweight title in 2018, he visited The White House and got some face time in with President Donald Trump. From the get-go, it was clear that this visit was an immense source of pride for Covington.

Tom Taylor - May 24, 2019

Brock Lesnar and Ronda Rousey have had massive influences in both the UFC and WWE. Speaking on a recent edition of MMA Junkie Radio, WWE Hall of Famer announcer Jim Ross gave his take on the UFC legacies of these two pro wrestling stars. He started with Ronda Rousey, who he credits with helping turn women’s MMA into a mainstream attraction.

BJPENN.COM Staff - May 24, 2019

Reigning ONE Welterweight World Champion Zebaztian Kadestam successfully defended his title against the rugged, talented and well-rounded Georgy Kichigin at ONE: Reign of Valor in March. Kadestam put on a stellar performance as Kichigin, who seemed to have control of the bout early, was unable to answer the bell for the third round after receiving a nasty elbow from the champion.

Natasha Hooper - May 24, 2019

Sage Northcutt come up short in his ONE Championship debut last Friday in Singapore, losing by knockout to striking specialist Cosmo Alexandre in just 29 seconds. Like pretty much everybody else in the MMA community, UFC commentator Joe Rogan has seen the footage of this brutal knockout. Yesterday during an episode of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast with Brendan Schaub, Rogan gave his take on the fight and the implications of such a tough loss

Drake Riggs - May 24, 2019

Following this past Friday’s fun ONE Championship: Enter the Dragon event, a certain headline came out earlier in the week that caught the attention of many of those in the MMA community… new ONE Vice President, Miesha Tate included. At the event in Singapore, former UFC prospect ‘Super’ Sage Northcutt made his promotional debut when he clashed with the seasoned kickboxer, Cosmo Alexandre. Unfortunately for Northcutt, things would play out completely opposite to how he expected them to.

Drake Riggs - May 23, 2019

The next UFC lightweight title bout is expected to be a big one as the new interim champion, ‘The Diamond,’ Dustin Poirier looks to try and dethrone the unbeaten king that is ‘The Eagle.’ After winning the interim crown by unanimous decision at UFC 236 in a rematch with current featherweight titleholder, Max Holloway, Poirier solidified himself as the new top challenger to take on the 27-0 Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Drake Riggs - May 23, 2019

This past Friday morning in America, ONE Championship: Enter the Dragon went down in Singapore. It was a super exciting event overall that saw plenty of surprising upsets unfold. However, ONE has since overturned one of those outcomes. Earlier this week, ONE CEO and Founder Chatri Sityodtong announced via Facebook that the ONE Super Series kickboxing featherweight world Grand Prix bout result between Petchmorakot Petchyindee and Giorgio Petrosyan would be overturned. The fight saw Petchyindee pull off the big upset victory by split decision.

Cole Shelton - May 23, 2019

UFC veteran Jeremy Kennedy is set to make his PFL debut tonight when he takes on Luis Rafael after his initial opponent was pulled for missing weight. However, the opponent change isn’t impacting Kennedy, who is no doubt ready to fight and win all the same. This will be Kennedy’s first time competing in a tournament format. The 26-year-old is excited about the matchmaking integrity the tournament format ensures. He can let his fighting do the talking.

Tom Taylor - May 23, 2019

Colby Covington and Mike Perry have exchanged plenty of trash talk over the last few years. Unfortunately, their respective positions in the welterweight rankings have made it difficult for the UFC to match them up with each other. Colby Covington believes he has a solution that could open the door to a massive grudge match with Mike Perry.

Tom Taylor - May 23, 2019

Former UFC talent Sage Northcutt experienced a pretty brutal loss in his ONE Championship debut, suffering a 29-second knockout at the hands of kickboxing specialist Cosmo Alexandre. This tough setback left Northcutt with serious facial injuries that needed to be corrected over the course of a nine-hour surgery.

Tom Taylor - May 23, 2019

Earlier this month, in the main event of UFC Rochester, former UFC lightweight contender Kevin Lee climbed up to the welterweight division, where he battled former lightweight champ Rafael dos Anjos in a high-stakes contender bout. Unfortunately, this move to welterweight did not immediately pay off for Kevin Lee, as he was submitted by his foe in the fourth round.

Tom Taylor - May 23, 2019

Keith Thurman is currently scheduled to meet Manny Pacquiao in the boxing ring on on July 20, but that’s not stopping him from calling for a fight with one of the biggest stars in all of combat sports: former two-division UFC champ Conor McGregor. Speaking to TMZ, the boxer attempted to coax McGregor away from the Octagon and back in the direction of the boxing ring.