MMA News
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.
EXCLUSIVE | Jason Knight released by the UFC
Cole Shelton - January 10, 2019
Jason Knight has been released by the UFC. “They cut me after that last loss,” Knight told BJPENN.com this week.
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.
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.
Mackenzie Dern forgoes flyweight move, sticks to strawweight division
Tom Taylor - January 10, 2019
Mackenzie Dern will continue to compete as a strawweight. Despite her recent struggles to reach the strawweight division’s 116-pound cap, she and her team have decided to stick to this division for now, rather than move up to the flyweight division, which has a limit of 126 pounds for non title fights.
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:
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.
Coach updates on Cris Cyborg's status with the UFC
Tom Taylor - January 9, 2019
Cris Cyborg is no longer the UFC women’s featherweight champion. The long-time titleholder’s reign came to a shocking halt in the co-main event of UFC 232 in late December, when she was knocked out by Amanda Nunes in just 51 seconds. Given that Cyborg’s current UFC contract will expire in March, some fans have speculated that she might take her services elsewhere at that point — perhaps to the boxing world, or to Japan for an exhibition bout.
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.
Joe Rogan explains why Nate Diaz is such a big star
Tom Taylor - January 9, 2019
In the opinion of UFC color commentator Joe Rogan, Nate Diaz is one of the biggest stars in the UFC — perhaps almost as big a star as Conor McGregor. Rogan gave his take on the star power of the younger Diaz brother on a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience MMA Show, discussing the topic with American Top Team coach Din Thomas.
Din Thomas and Joe Rogan discuss the importance of telling fighters when to retire
Tom Taylor - January 9, 2019
Din Thomas, one of the coaches at American Top Team, and a former fighter himself, says he has no problem telling his fighters when it’s time to hang up the gloves. Thomas opened up on the topic in a conversation with Joe Rogan on the Joe Rogan Experience MMA Show.
Coach feels Cris Cyborg 'beat herself' against Amanda Nunes
Tom Taylor - January 9, 2019
Back at UFC 232 in late December, the longstanding title reign of UFC featherweight champ Cris Cyborg came to a shocking end at the hands of Amanda Nunes, who needed just 51 seconds to win by knockout. Speaking to MMAjunkie recently, Cyborg’s coach Jason Parillo gave his take on this shocking upset defeat. In his eyes, a big part of the problem was Cyborg’s approach to the first exchanges of the bout.
Jimmy Smith has an interesting theory about why so many UFC fighters are getting commentary jobs
Tom Taylor - January 9, 2019
Jimmy Smith served as a UFC commentator for the duration of 2018, but in 2019, the promotion decided not to renew his contract. Instead, he explained on The MMA Hour, they’re planning on hiring more fighters as commentators.
Jorge Masvidal praises Nick and Nate Diaz, still wants to fight both
Tom Taylor - January 9, 2019
Jorge Masvidal was briefly linked to a UFC 235 showdown with Nick Diaz, but that fight unfortunately fizzled out. All the same, Masvidal still has tremendous respect for Nick Diaz and his brother Nate, and is definitely interested in fighting both under the right circumstances. “Obviously, I want to fight Diaz, because they’re dogs,” Masvidal said on a recent episode of MMAjunkie Radio. “That’s what I really admire about them. Their skillset is not the greatest. They’re great at boxing. They’re great at jiu-jitsu even off their backs, but that thing – they don’t kick, they don’t wrestle.
Conor McGregor and Al Iaquinta exchange shots on social media
Christopher Taylor - January 8, 2019
Former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor took aim at Tristar gym head coach Firas Zahabi earlier this evening, which resulted in an bitter exchange with Al Iaquinta. “Mystic Mac” had blasted Zahabi for his recent comments in which he insinuated that current UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway would defeat Conor McGregor in a rematch.