MMA News
Darren Till still wants Conor McGregor next, says 'Proper 12 is sh*te'
Drake Riggs - January 10, 2019
Liverpool’s finest fighting son is the No. 3 ranked UFC welterweight contender, ‘The Gorilla’ Darren Till. We haven’t seen Till compete inside the Octagon since September when he challenged Tyron Woodley for the division’s title at UFC 228.
UFC Brooklyn loses two fighters to injury with just a week away from fight night
Drake Riggs - January 10, 2019
It’s been a bit of a rough journey to get to the UFC’s very first show on ESPN programming. First, there was the trouble finding the main event which resulted in the UFC pulling UFC 233’s main event to put it on UFC Brooklyn (the first show on ESPN+). This led to the cancelation of UFC 233 entirely.
VIDEO | Joe Rogan: 'I don't know why people think [Floyd Mayweather vs Tenshin Nasukawa] was a fixed fight'
Drake Riggs - January 10, 2019
“A lot of people think that was a fixed fight,” Joe Rogan said on the Joe Rogan Experience. “I think that was a 120-pound fighter… Fighting the best ever. I mean, it wasn’t a fixed fight. I don’t know why people think it was a fixed fight. That guy fights at 126-pounds I think. I think that’s his weight class. He’s tiny.
Eddie Alvarez shares inspirational story from the very beginning of his MMA career
Tom Taylor - January 10, 2019
Long before Eddie Alvarez established himself as one of the world’s best fighters, he worked long, hard days pouring concrete. When he finally got the opportunity to become a full-time fighter, he assumed that his life was going to get easier — that the early mornings and long days of physical labor were over.
Dominick Reyes believes Anthony Smith can defeat Jon Jones at UFC 235
Mike Pendleton - January 10, 2019
As Jon Jones returns to the top of the light heavyweight division as champion, he has seen and heard from new names and faces coming after the belt. One of those fresh faces will be his next opponent Anthony Smith, who Jones is scheduled to defend his title against in the main event slot at UFC 235, on March 2, in Las Vegas. While many, including the oddsmakers, believe this matchup will look very one-sided for the champion, Anthony Smith and others don’t seem to be intimidated by Jones.
EXCLUSIVE | Garry Tonon explains how the Danaher Death Squad has changed BJJ, MMA
Mike Straus - January 10, 2019
In recent years the sport of jiu-jitsu has exploded in popularity and right at the forefront of the movement is Garry Tonon. A grappler by trade, Tonon recently dove head first into MMA, going 3-0 under the ONE Championship banner. Having competed in countless grappling and BJJ tournaments “The Lion Killer”, as he is known, believes we are just now starting to see the true essence of jiu-jitsu.
Jon Jones fight night drug test comes back clean
Mike Pendleton - January 10, 2019
After all the controversy that surrounded UFC 232 back in December, UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones has received some good news. According to Brett Okamoto of ESPN, Jones was tested on fight night (December 29) and the results of those tests were clean. The most important detail of these test results, which were made public by California State Athletic Commission executive director Andy Foster, is that no traces of the M3 metabolite were found in Jones’ system.
Joe Rogan compares legacies of Jon Jones and Demetrious Johnson
Tom Taylor - January 10, 2019
Speaking on the latest edition of the Joe Rogan Experience MMA Show, UFC commentator Joe Rogan began heaping praise on former UFC flyweight champ and new ONE Championship star Demetrious Johnson. In Rogan’s eyes, the man they call “Mighty Mouse” is simply the best ever.
The quarterfinal bouts of the ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix are now official
Tom Taylor - January 10, 2019
The four quarterfinal bouts of the ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix are now set. This tournament will feature eight of the promotion’s best lightweights in Eddie Alvarez, Timofey Nastyukhin, Saygid “Dagi” Guseyn Arslanaliev, Ev Ting, Amir Khan, Ariel Sexton, Lowen Tynanes and Honorio Banario. These eight fighters will be competing for a shot at the ONE Lightweight title, which will next be on the line at ONE: A New Era on March 31 in Tokyo, Japan, when the champion Eduard Folayang defends his title against Shinya Aoki.
Rose Namajunas opens as underdog against Jessica Andrade
James Lynch - January 10, 2019
Rose Namajunas is getting no love from the oddsmakers. The UFC strawweight champion, who is scheduled to defend her title against Jessica Andrade at UFC 237, opened as a +100 underdog (bet $100 to win $100) according to 5Dimes. Since then, the line has shot up even further, as Namajunas is sitting at a +135 underdog (bet $100 to win $135) with Andrade coming in at -165 (bet $165 to win $100).
Coach Din Thomas breaks down the 'four categories' of mixed martial artist
Tom Taylor - January 10, 2019
Speaking on the latest edition of the Joe Rogan Experience MMA Show, American Top Team coach Din Thomas detailed what he calls the ‘four categories’ of mixed martial artist. He says that, as a coach, it’s important for him to identify which category each fighter falls into in order to train them effectively.
Dominick Cruz shares update after shoulder surgery
Tom Taylor - January 10, 2019
On Tuesday, former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz went under the knife to repair an injured shoulder. Speaking on Twitter shortly thereafter, the former champion called this surgery a success and said that he’s back on the road to recovery.
Report | Conor McGregor in negotiations to return to boxing for grudge match with Paulie Malignaggi
Christopher Taylor - January 9, 2019
Former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor is reportedly in negotiations to fight former boxing champion Paulie Malignaggi in the squared circle. That news comes via @BoxingKingdom14, who reported the following on Twitter:
Report | Officials looking to add a welterweight fight between Darren Till and Colby Covington to UFC London
Christopher Taylor - January 9, 2019
Darren Till and Colby Covington have engaged in some heated exchanges on social media in the past and have now been offered the opportunity to settle their beef inside the octagon at UFC London. BJPENN.com’s Chris Taylor reported the news of the proposed welterweight clash moments ago on Twitter.
10 Must-see MMA matchups in 2019
Drake Riggs - January 9, 2019
2018 has come and gone. Now we’re headed into 2019 and in the MMA world, there are some matchups that haven’t come to fruition just yet… But we definitely hope that this is the year that we’ll see them. Here are 10 must-see matchups in 2019.
Joe Rogan names a potential Jon Jones matchup that he wishes we could have seen
Thomas Taylor - January 9, 2019
Having smashed Alexander Gustafsson to a third-round TKO victory in the main event of UFC 232 in late December, Jon Jones is once again the UFC light heavyweight champion. With the belt once again wrapped around his waist, Jones is now scheduled for a fight with Anthony Smith at UFC 235. If the champ clears that hurdle, he can look forward to more huge fights in the UFC light heavyweight division and beyond.
Cain Velasquez on Jon Jones fight: 'I'll try to make that happen'
Tom Taylor - January 9, 2019
At long last, former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez is scheduled to return to the cage. The heavyweight legend is set to take on former title challenger Francis Ngannou at UFC Phoenix on February 17. If Velasquez is able to topple the fearsome Ngannou — not a certainty by any means — it’ll open the door to other huge fights in the ever dangerous UFC heavyweight division. Of all the fights that would become available to him, it’s arguable that none would be as big as a super fight with UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
ONE lightweight champion Eduard Folayang looks back on a moment that gave him goosebumps
BJPENN.COM Staff - January 9, 2019
In an instant, 12 months of pain had evaporated. With his hand raised and the belt wrapped around his waist, 16,000 screaming fans erupted. Eduard Folayang felt tingles down his spine. “Of course, I wanted to cry but the tears didn’t come out,” reflected Folayang, who became the first man in ONE Championship history to claim the lightweight world title for the second time when he defeated Singapore’s Amir Khan at ONE: Conquest of Champions in late November.