MMA News

Josh Evanoff - February 26, 2025

PFL heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou could meet Wladimir Klitschko in his next boxing match. ‘The Predator’ hasn’t been seen in the cage since his clash with Renan Ferreira in October. Competing in MMA for the first time since 2022, it took just one round for Francis Ngannou to score a stoppage win over ‘Problema’. Following the win, the newly crowned PFL Superfights heavyweight champion revealed plans for a spring 2025 return.

Josh Evanoff - February 26, 2025

Henry Cejudo recently caught up with Jason Herzog following their controversial meeting at UFC Seattle. ‘Triple C’ returned to the cage over the weekend against Song Yadong. Back for the first time since a decision loss to Merab Dvalishvili last February, Henry Cejudo hoped to get back on the right track against ‘The Kung Fu Kid’. Sadly, things didn’t go too well for the former two-division UFC champion.

Josh Evanoff - February 26, 2025

Former UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski has an eye on retirement. ‘The Great’ hasn’t been seen in the cage since a title defense against Ilia Topuria last February. In the main event of UFC 298, Alexander Volkanovski suffered his second straight knockout loss, being stopped by ‘El Matador’ in round two. While the former champion expected a rematch with Topuria next, that won’t be happening.

Josh Evanoff - February 26, 2025

Rising star Jean Silva wants to face Justin Gaethje at UFC 313. ‘Lord’ is fresh off his return to the octagon at UFC Seattle over the weekend. Back for the first time since a knockout win over Drew Dober last summer up at lightweight, Jean Silva faced Melsik Baghdasaryan. There, the Brazilian scored yet another stoppage win, stopping ‘The Gun’ inside of a round. Fresh off that win, Silva is already interested in a return to the cage.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - February 26, 2025

One high-level UFC bantamweight is calling for a showdown with Umar Nurmagomedov. Nurmagomedov recently saw his unbeaten streak come to an end in a failed bid for the UFC Bantamweight Championship. He fell short in his title opportunity against Merab Dvalishvili in the co-main event of UFC 311 back in January. Nurmagomedov injured his hand in the fight and it isn’t clear when he’ll be ready to return to action.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - February 26, 2025

Belal Muhammad believes he has the best standup of all 170 pounders ahead of his first title defense. Muhammad will collide with Jack Della Maddalena in a UFC Welterweight Championship fight on May 10. The title bout is scheduled to headline UFC 315 inside Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Maddalena stepped up with Shavkat Rakhmonov out of action due to an injury.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - February 26, 2025

Robert Whittaker thinks a showdown with Sean Strickland makes sense for his next fight. Whittaker and Strickland are both coming off losses. “The Reaper” was submitted by Khamzat Chimaev and needed to have work done on his bottom teeth following the bout. Strickland fell short in his bid to become a two-time UFC Middleweight Champion, dropping a unanimous decision to Dricus du Plessis back in January.

Harry Kettle - February 26, 2025

Renato Moicano is the latest lightweight to throw his name in the hat for a showdown with Justin Gaethje at UFC 313. As we know, Renato Moicano is a pretty interesting figure within the UFC’s lightweight division. Following a good run of form, his most recent outing saw him battle it out with Islam Makhachev on incredibly short notice. The UFC lightweight championship was on the line, but unfortunately for Renato, he wasn’t able to overcome the unbelievable strength and overall ability of the champion.

Harry Kettle - February 26, 2025

Patricio Pitbull has leaked a series of heated direct messages between himself and Yair Rodriguez ahead of their clash at UFC 314. As we know, Patricio Pitbull has officially signed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. In his first appearance at UFC 314, he is set to battle it out with Yair Rodriguez. As you can imagine, there’s a lot of excitement in the air when it comes to considering what these two could do to one another in the cage.

Harry Kettle - February 26, 2025

MMA fans have given their thoughts on Islam Makhachev’s cryptic message regarding a possible Ilia Topuria fight. As we know, Islam Makhachev is the UFC lightweight champion – and he’s also one of the most feared men in all of mixed martial arts. In addition to that, he’s also starting to enter the conversation for best lightweights of all time, with some believing that he’s already made his way to the top of the list.

BJPENN.COM Staff - February 25, 2025

Former ONE Bantamweight MMA World Champion Bibiano Fernandes called time on a legendary career after his fight at ONE 171: Qatar.   “The Flash” collided with old foe and fellow former champ Kevin Belingon for the fifth time last Thursday, February 20. Fernandes put on a thrilling show in his final appearance, ultimately earning the unanimous decision win inside Lusail Sports Arena. 

BJPENN.COM Staff - February 25, 2025

ONE Strawweight MMA World Champion Joshua Pacio’s big win at ONE 171: Qatar caught the attention of boxing great Manny Pacquiao.  Following the momentous unification win over Jarred Brooks last Thursday, February 20, Pacquiao publicly congratulated Pacio. 

Cole Shelton - February 25, 2025

Henry Cejudo could soon be retiring from MMA again. Cejudo suffered a technical decision loss to Song Yadong in the main event of UFC Seattle on Saturday. Cejudo got poked in the eye near the end of the third round but decided to fight through it. However, the fight was stopped at the beginning of the fourth round due to the eye poke.

Josh Evanoff - February 25, 2025

Jose Aldo will reportedly meet Aiemann Zahabi at UFC 315 in Montreal later this year. Earlier this month, Dana White announced plans to return to Canada in May. Returning to Montreal for the first time since UFC 186 in April 2015, a welterweight title clash between Belal Muhammad and Jack Della Maddalena will headline the event. The co-main event will see the return of women’s flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko against the rising Manon Fiorot.

Josh Evanoff - February 25, 2025

Former Bellator featherweight champion Patricio Pitbull would’ve retired if the UFC didn’t sign him. The Brazilian hasn’t been seen in the cage since a knockout win over UFC veteran Jeremy Kennedy last March. That victory wound up being Patricio Pitbull’s final appearance in the Bellator cage, as he was released from the PFL last month. The move came after the featherweight publically feuded with company executive Donn Davis over inactivity.

Josh Evanoff - February 25, 2025

According to UFC commentator Daniel Cormier, Justin Gaethje fully intends to compete next month. ‘The Highlight’ hasn’t been seen since his ‘Fight of the Year’ contender with Max Holloway last April. At UFC 300, Justin Gaethje went back and forth with ‘Blessed’, with his ceremonial BMF title on the line. In round five, the Hawaiian scored a shocking knockout win with just seconds left in the bout. For Gaethje, the defeat was a brutal one.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - February 25, 2025

One UFC commentator remains puzzled by the actions of Nikolay Veretennikov at UFC Seattle. Veretennikov was featured on the preliminary portion of the card against UFC debutant Austin Vanderford. Things didn’t go Veretennikov’s way, as he was stopped in the second round via TKO. It didn’t take long for Veretennikov to protest the stoppage, but he didn’t solely take his frustration out on the referee. He shoved Vanderford from behind as he was celebrating, prompting the former Bellator fighter to shove him back before flipping two birds.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - February 25, 2025

UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier believes Henry Cejudo made a mistake with his initial retirement back in 2020. After ending the record-setting UFC Flyweight Championship reign of Demetrious Johnson, Cejudo went on to stop TJ Dillashaw in the first round to capture the bantamweight gold, becoming a “champ-champ” in the process. Cejudo followed that up with a second-round TKO finish over Dominick Cruz to successfully defend the 135-pound title.