MMA News
Conor McGregor coach regrets defensive strategy for Khabib Nurmagomedov fight, says 'something was off'
Tom Taylor - October 9, 2018
Last Saturday night, in the main event of UFC 229, former UFC lightweight and featherweight champion Conor McGregor returned to the Octagon after two long years away, as he attempted to reclaim the UFC lightweight belt from undefeated champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. Unfortunately for McGregor and his dedicated team, this mission didn’t go as planned. Instead, the Irish MMA star was soundly walloped en route to a fourth-round submission loss. Although he was able to steal a round from Nurmagomedov — something nobody has been able to do in a long time — it was not enough, and he’ll now have to return to the drawing board.
Khabib Nurmagomedov's father vows to impose tougher punishment than the UFC
Tom Taylor - October 9, 2018
UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov is currently in hot water. Shortly after his fourth-round submission of Conor McGregor in the UFC 229 main event, he vaulted out of the Octagon and attacked McGregor’s friend and training partner Dillon Danis, sparking a wild brawl between members of both teams. For his role in this post fight chaos, Khabib Nurmagomedov is now facing punishment from the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC), who oversaw the fight, and possibly from the UFC as well.
UFC 229 Rankings Update: Conor McGregor drops six spots on pound-for-pound list
Chris Taylor - October 8, 2018
Former two division Conor McGregor has experienced a significant drop in the pound-for-pound rankings following his stoppage loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229. The brash Irishman entered the UFC 229 title fight listed as #2 in the pound-for-pound ranks, but dropped six spots to #8 following his fourth-round submission loss to “The Eagle”.
Jose Aldo calls for a rematch with Conor McGregor following UFC 229
Chris Taylor - October 8, 2018
Former UFC featherweight kingpin Jose Aldo is looking to score a rematch with Conor McGregor. The Brazilians callout comes on the heels of the Irishman’s fourth-round submission loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229.
Report | Daniel Cormier vs Derrick Lewis heavyweight title fight in discussion for UFC 230
Drake Riggs - October 8, 2018
Right when we thought that all the craziness in regards to UFC 230 was over…we get hit with some more surprising possibilities. UFC 230 is the UFC’s return to Madison Square Garden and takes place on November 3. Announced as the headliner last week to the dissatisfaction of many was the vacant flyweight title bout between Valentina Shevchenko and No. 4 ranked contender, Sijara Eubanks.
Dana White thinks fine of $250,000 and suspension of four to six months is fitting for Khabib Nurmagomedov's UFC 229 post-fight antics
Drake Riggs - October 8, 2018
UFC 229 was anticipated to be the biggest event in UFC history. And according to UFC president Dana White, the numbers are reflecting that. A fight is what we got what and what we expected in the big lightweight title main event between champion Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor. It was what came afterward that caught us all off guard.
Gegard Mousasi eyeing retirement after three more fights
Drake Riggs - October 8, 2018
Bellator 206 was one of the year’s biggest MMA events regardless of organization. And in its headliner, we saw a fight that we never expected to see. For Bellator, history was on the line as they put two champions against each other for the very first time. Moving up and looking to become the first Bellator dual-division champion was the longtime welterweight elite, Rory “Red King” MacDonald. Standing in his way was the Dutchman, Gegard “The Dreamcatcher” Mousasi.
Dana White says UFC 229 did 'way over 2 million' pay-per-view buys
Cole Shelton - October 8, 2018
UFC 229 was touted as the biggest fight in UFC history. As well as a fight ‘the world would be watching’ and well, it turned out to be true. After months of bad pay-per-view numbers, where UFC 228 estimated at 130 thousand buys, UFC 229 was a sigh of relief for the UFC. In the main event, Conor McGregor made his return to the Octagon to take on the lightweight champion and undefeated Khabib Nurmagomedov. Nurmagomedov proved to be too much for McGregor and submitted him in the fourth round.
EXCLUSIVE | TJ Dillashaw wants Dominick Cruz to ' work his way back'
Cole Shelton - October 8, 2018
When TJ Dillashaw lost his belt to Dominick Cruz in 2016 by split-decision, many fans were clamoring for a rematch. However, a rematch never happened as Cruz then defended the belt against Urijah Faber before losing the belt to Cody Garbrandt.
Conor McGregor coach hopes NSAC is lenient on Nurmagomedov, can 'understand his reaction'
Thomas Taylor - October 8, 2018
On Saturday night, in the main event of the massive UFC 229 card, UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov defended his title with a fourth-round submission win over former UFC lightweight and featherweight champ Conor McGregor. Unfortunately, however, that’s not where the violence ended. Moments after the fight came to a close, Khabib Nurmagomedov vaulted out of the cage and attacked Conor McGregor’s training partner Dillon Danis, which sparked a massive brawl between his and McGregor’s teams. The chaos swirled inside and outside of the cage, and it was several minutes before it was completely under control.
Nick Diaz feels Conor McGregor didn't look like himself against Khabib Nurmagomedov
Tom Taylor - October 8, 2018
Over the weekend, UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov picked up his first title defense — and the biggest win of his career — choking out former lightweight and featherweight champion Conor McGregor in the first round. While Nurmagomedov’s win over McGregor was quite lopsided, it wasn’t enough to impress former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz. In Diaz’s eyes, Conor McGregor didn’t look like himself in the fight. He also finds Khabib Nurmagomedov’s fighting style ‘dirty.’
EXCLUSIVE | Colby Covington doubts legitimacy of Woodley injury, vows to 'end his career' on Super Bowl Weekend
Cole Shelton - October 8, 2018
One of the options for the main event of the upcoming UFC 230 card was a welterweight title fight between champion Tyron Woodley and interim champion Colby Covington. With Covington healthy, and Woodley riding a huge win over Darren Till, the fight seemed to make a lot of sense. Furthermore, Woodley said he was open to fighting Covington at UFC 230, so long as he was given a clean bill of health. Unfortunately, he was then forced to go under the knife to repair an injured hand, ruling out this possibility. Well, Colby Covington isn’t buying it.
EXCLUSIVE | Leslie Smith: It's 'very obvious to me that fighters need a union'
Cole Shelton - October 8, 2018
Efforts to unionize UFC fighters have come and gone throughout the years. Every time a new union group comes out, there is optimism that it might become a success, yet so far, not one has gained any meaningful traction. However, Project Spearhead feels different. Thanks to this initiative’s hard work, UFC fighters are finally realizing that they are employees and not independent contractors as the UFC would have them believe. Former UFC fighter and Project Spearhead’s Interim President Leslie Smith is certain of this. “I started Project Spearhead because it was very obvious to me that fighters need a union,” Leslie Smith told BJPENN.COM. “There has been several other efforts that for various reasons didn’t work out. I knew my time, my promotional contract with the UFC was almost over. I needed to deal with the first issue, which is whether we are independent contractors or employees. Getting anybody to agree to anything is being really difficult. The whole point of this is unity, that is what we need, fighters to unify and come together. By getting the information, [it will] determine if we are independent contractors or employees. That would be the first step on getting everyone on the same page.”
Chuck Liddell rips UFC, Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor after UFC 229 riot: 'It's unacceptable'
Tom Taylor - October 8, 2018
The riot that occurred shortly after Khabib Nurmagomedov submitted Conor McGregor at UFC 229 left a bad taste in pretty much everybody’s mouth. Former UFC light heavyweight champ Chuck Liddell, who is gearing up for a rematch with Tito Ortiz under the Golden Boy MMA banner, certainly wasn’t impressed. He feels this kind of ugliness only serves to the set the sport back and erase the efforts he and other MMA trailblazers made to legitimize it. Shortly after UFC 229 wrapped up, Chuck Liddell took to social media to give his take on the situation.
Rafael dos Anjos trashes Dillon Danis, Danis challenges him to street fight
Tom Taylor - October 8, 2018
Shortly after Khabib Nurmagomedov submitted Conor McGregor at UFC 229, he leapt out of the Octagon, and onto McGregor’s training partner Dillon Danis like Mario on a Goomba. From there, he and Danis engaged in a brief scrap, trading punches until they were separated. Shortly thereafter, former UFC lightweight champion and current welterweight contender Rafael dos Anjos took to Twitter, where he trashed Dillon Danis for his role in this ugly, post-fight brawl.
Paulie Malignaggi goes after "quitter" Conor McGregor on Twitter
Tom Taylor - October 8, 2018
Over the weekend, in the main event of UFC 229, former UFC lightweight and featherweight champion Conor McGregor returned to the Octagon after two long years away, where he attempted to reclaim the UFC lightweight belt from undefeated champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. Regrettably for McGregor and his throngs of dedicated fans, he came up short. After three, tough rounds, the Irish MMA star found himself locked up in a Khabib Nurmagomedov choke in the fourth, and was quickly forced to tap out.
Zubaira Tukhugov, one of the fighters who attacked Conor McGregor, boasts about it on social media
Tom Taylor - October 8, 2018
On Saturday night, in the main event of UFC 229, UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov defended his title with a dominant, fourth-round submission win over former UFC lightweight and featherweight champ Conor McGregor. Unfortunately, that’s not where the violence ended. Moments after the fight ended, Khabib Nurmagomedov leapt over the cage and attacked Conor McGregor’s training partner Dillon Danis, which sparked a massive brawl between his and McGregor’s teams. Punches were thrown by both sides, and several arrests were made.
ONE Championship Receives Another US $166 Million in Series D Funding
BJPENN.COM Staff - October 8, 2018
Asia-based martial arts organization ONE Championship just announced through a press release that it has raised an additional US $166 million in the latest round of its funding. Led by major investor Sequoia Capital, who had already invested in the company in 2017, ONE Championship now has a total capital base exceeding US $250 million. Other investors who participated in the Series D funding round include Temasek, Greenoaks Capital, and other leading institutional investors. The equity investment further solidifies ONE’s dominant market leadership position in the sports media industry in Asia.