MMA News

Tom Taylor - December 19, 2018

On February 9, at UFC 234 in Melbourne, Australia, former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva will battle red-hot contender Israel Adesanya. Heading into this matchup, many fans have suggested that Silva and Adesanya are quite similar. Some have even suggested that the latter is a newer, younger version of the former.

Drake Riggs - December 18, 2018

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Tom Taylor - December 18, 2018

Sage Northcutt has big plans for his ONE Championship career. Not only does the eight-fight UFC veteran plan on capturing a ONE Championship MMA title, but he’s also hoping to snag titles in Muay Thai and kickboxing competition as part of the ONE Super Series. “What I think is cool is, they have, not only do they have MMA, but they also have Muay Thai and they have kickboxing,” Northcutt said on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour (transcript via MMA Fighting). “So, I want to be the champion in MMA, I want to be the champion in Muay Thai and kickboxing. I want to do it all. And I think that ONE Championship is going to be really cool because I believe that I’m going to display my different skills in each of those and I believe be the champ in each of those. I think it’s the perfect league.”

Cole Shelton - December 18, 2018

Diego Ferreira had a crazy fight week in Toronto preparing for UFC 231. The Brazilian was originally set to take on John Makdessi, but Makdessi got hurt and had to pull out of the fight. Then former UFC fighter Jesse Ronson stepped in to fight Ferreira on short notice, but was quickly pulled from the bout for being too heavy. That was just days before the fight and it left Ferreira wondering if he was going to fight after all.

Tom Taylor - December 18, 2018

At long last, Valentina Shevchenko has captured the thing she’s been chasing: The UFC flyweight belt. Shevchenko earned this title with a dominant decision victory over former UFC strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk at UFC 231 earlier this month. Looking back on the fight, Valentina Shevchenko says she’s pleased not only with her own performance, but with Jedrzejczyk’s. She believes that, together, they showcased the true art of fighting.

James Lynch - December 18, 2018

Jon Jones will step back into the cage for the first time this year when he faces Alexander Gustafsson in a rematch on Dec. 29 at UFC 232. The lack of cage time is no surprise to those who have followed Jones’ career over the last few years. Drug testing suspensions and a hit-and-run accident have kept the 31-year-old limited to just one fight a year since 2014 and also cost him his light heavyweight title.

Tom Taylor - December 18, 2018

Former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva has a lot of respect for former welterweight and middleweight champ Georges St-Pierre, but he feels that St-Pierre is averse to high-risk challenges. Anderson Silva gave his assessment of Georges St-Pierre at a press conference at his new Spider Kick gym on Monday.

Tom Taylor - December 18, 2018

Last Saturday night, in the main event of the UFC’s final show on FOX, highly regarded lightweight contender Kevin Lee hit a speed bump in the form of Al Iaquinta. Though Lee was not without his moments in the pair’s five-round encounter, he ultimately gave up a unanimous decision to his foe, which derailed his lightweight title dreams for the moment. That being said, Lee promises that he will still capture the belt in the future. While he is disappointed in this loss, his resolve has not been shaken.

Tom Taylor - December 18, 2018

UFC President Dana White recently suggested that the winner of Anderson Silva and Israel Adesanya’s UFC 234 middleweight fight will get the next crack at the middleweight belt. Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ Souza, who has been chasing a UFC title shot since he arrived in the UFC in 2013, was not happy to hear this. Speaking to the Brazilian website PVT last week, Jacare shared his belief that neither Silva nor Adesanya deserves a title shot.

Tom Taylor - December 18, 2018

After watching his fighter Al Iaquinta defeat Kevin Lee in the main event of UFC Milwaukee last weekend, Coach Ray Longo is hoping for an Iaquinta vs. Conor McGregor fight next. The renowned coached explained the appeal of this fight on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour.

Thomas Taylor - December 17, 2018

It definitely seems like former UFC lightweight and featherweight champion Conor McGregor is planning on fighting again in 2019. On Monday evening, the MMA superstar took to Twitter with a hint that he’ll be throwing more of his patented rocket-fuelled punches in the New Year.

Drake Riggs - December 17, 2018

At UFC 231 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, one of the most highly anticipated matchups in recent memory took place as two men battled over the UFC featherweight crown. To say that Brian Ortega took some damage in that fight against Max Holloway would be a bit of an understatement. But you wouldn’t know it just by looking at him today.

Thomas Taylor - December 17, 2018

Vitor Belfort is retired no longer. Speaking on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show on Monday afternoon, the Brazilian MMA legend announced his intentions to end his retirement. Belfort has not yet signed with a promotion, so details on the date and opponent for his comeback are still a mystery.

Cole Shelton - December 17, 2018

Geoff Neal may very well have earned the 2018 Knockout of the Year honors with his UFC 228 head-kick knockout of Frank Camacho, but he’s not resting on his laurels. On January 19, when the UFC debuts on ESPN+ in Brooklyn, New York, Neal will take a big step up in competition as he battles Belal Muhammad. Muhammad is currently 14-2 as a professional, and there is no question that this will be Neal’s toughest fight to date.

Tom Taylor - December 17, 2018

Former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz was briefly expected to make his return to the cage opposite John Lineker at the now-cancelled UFC 233 on January 26. Unfortunately, Cruz was sidelined with yet another unfortunate injury. Speaking on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show this week, the former champion opened up on the severity of this injury and how he sustained it.

Tom Taylor - December 17, 2018

Over the last few weeks, fight fans have been very excited about a potential fight between Nick Diaz and Jorge Masvidal, which was expected to occur at UFC 235 on March 2. Unfortunately, it doesn’t sound like it’s happening after all. On Sunday night, Nick Diaz threw a wrench into this planned Jorge Masvidal fight.

Tom Taylor - December 17, 2018

Conor McGregor is still dealing with a six-month driving ban for repeated speeding infractions, but he was able to dodge another driving-related charge in court in Dublin on Monday. The Irish MMA superstar was appearing court after being accused of driving without a license or insurance when stopped by the police in July. Because he was unable to produce these documents when he was pulled over, he was charged with driving without documentation. McGregor, of course, was licensed at the time, and was able to produce all the required documents and paperwork to indicate this fact ahead of his hearing. As a result, all charges were dropped (h/t RT.com).

Tom Taylor - December 17, 2018

Colby Covington and Tyron Woodley are the two halves of arguably the most heated rivalry in MMA today. The two top welterweights, who used to share a training space at American Top Team, are now sworn enemies. Yet there is one thing they can agree on: they want to fight each other next. Covington and Woodley’s mutual desire to be locked in the cage together is particularly pertinent lately, given that the UFC has recently moved to give Kamaru Usman the next shot at Woodley’s title. Usman has even received a bout agreement for the fight.