MMA News

Curtis Calhoun - November 19, 2025

Vadim Nemkov and Cris Cyborg, two of the greatest Bellator fighters of all time, will feature on the same card on December 13th. The PFL will wrap up its 2025 event slate under new leadership, after John Martin took over the promotion’s CEO role earlier this year. PFL Lyon, which marks the league’s return to the European continent, will feature two elite fighters atop the card.

Curtis Calhoun - November 19, 2025

UFC lightweight contender Paddy Pimblett didn’t hold back on Justin Gaethje amidst the former BMF titleholder’s holdout. The UFC lightweight title picture is filled with big names and big questions, including who will face newly-crowned champion Ilia Topuria for his first title defense. Topuria knocked out Charles Oliveira at UFC 317 earlier this year to become the latest two-division titleholder in the promotion’s history.

Curtis Calhoun - November 19, 2025

Heavyweight MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko slammed Jack Della Maddalena’s grappling coach, Craig Jones, for his taunts ahead of UFC 322. Jack Della Maddalena’s first UFC welterweight title defense was a disaster as the titleholder lost to Islam Makhachev by a lopsided unanimous decision at UFC 322. Maddalena failed to stifle Makhachev’s relentless wrestling, fading as the fight went on and failing to significantly damage the former lightweight champ.

Cole Shelton - November 19, 2025

Dan Hooker expects to secure a title shot at UFC Qatar. Hooker is set to headline UFC Qatar on Saturday against Arman Tsarukyan in a pivotal fight at lightweight. The winner of the fight will be right in the title picture at lightweight, and Hooker expects to get it over Paddy Pimblett and Justin Gaethje.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - November 19, 2025

Tony Ferguson will be dabbling in the “sweet science” once again. Following a TKO finish over Salt Papi back in late August, “El Cucuy” will share the ring with Warren Spencer at “Misfits Boxing: The Fight Before Christmas” on Dec. 20. The boxing match is set to take place inside the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - November 19, 2025

Ian Machado Garry believes he can give Islam Makhachev fits in the standup. Makhachev displayed his dominance in the main event of UFC 322, defeating Jack Della Maddalena via unanimous decision. Makhachev’s effective grappling led to a clean sweep on the scorecards and UFC gold in a second weight class.

Cole Shelton - November 19, 2025

In the main event of UFC Qatar, a pivotal lightweight fight goes down as Arman Tsarukyan takes on Dan Hooker. Heading into the fight, Tsarukyan is a massive -530 favorite while ‘The Hangman’ is a +360 underdog on FanDuel. Ahead of the scrap, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the lightweight fight at UFC Qatar. The pros are aligned with the odds as they expect Tsarukyan’s wrestling and grappling to be too much for Hooker.

BJPENN.COM Staff - November 19, 2025

Championship gold validates every sacrifice. Nadaka discovered this truth Saturday night, capturing the inaugural ONE Atomweight Muay Thai World Title in front of his home crowd with a performance that showcased his complete skill set. The 24-year-old Japanese striker dominated Numsurin Chor Ketwina across five rounds at ONE 173. The event took place on Saturday, November 16, inside Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan. The Eiwa Sports Gym representative picked apart the Thai veteran with clinical accuracy. He earned a unanimous decision that extended his remarkable winning streak to 40 consecutive victories.

Dylan Bowker - November 18, 2025

Shem Rock recognizes his debut opponent in the UFC has a spotless MMA record, but does not have an ample amount of appreciation for his fighting style. The man known as Shaqueme Rock is making his long-awaited UFC debut this weekend at UFC Qatar when he battles Nurullo Aliev. This bout goes down on November 22nd, and when asked for his thoughts on Aliev’s resume as well as general skill set heading into this fight, Rock said [via Bowks Talking Bouts],

Curtis Calhoun - November 18, 2025

UFC legend Demetrious Johnson went off on a vocal group of fans who were critical of Islam Makhachev’s win at UFC 322. Islam Makhachev achieved his lifelong goal to win a second UFC world championship when he dominated Jack Della Maddalena by unanimous decision last weekend at UFC 322. Maddalena’s welterweight title reign ended in one title defense after winning the belt earlier this year.

Curtis Calhoun - November 18, 2025

One of UFC women’s flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko’s biggest rivals believes she’s earned the right to be called the greatest. UFC women’s flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko earned arguably the biggest win of her career last weekend at UFC 322. In a dominant performance against former strawweight titleholder Zhang Weili, Shevchenko pitched a shutout in the Octagon en route to a unanimous decision victory.

Cole Shelton - November 18, 2025

Volkan Oezdemir is finally making his return to the Octagon after over a year away. Nearly a year to the date, Oezdemir is set to return at UFC Qatar when he takes on Alonzo Menifield. He’s coming off a decision loss to Carlos Ulberg, and after the loss, Oezdemir said it was always part of the plan to take some time off, as his girlfriend was pregnant and he was going to be a dad.

Curtis Calhoun - November 18, 2025

Manager Ali Abdelaziz says Ilia Topuria could suffer a similar fate as Dillon Danis if he continues to taunt Islam Makhachev. Just before Islam Makhachev won a second UFC title at UFC 322 over Jack Della Maddalena, members of his team were escorted out of Madison Square Garden after getting into a brawl with Dillon Danis cageside. The incident happened after months of bad blood between Danis, Makhachev, and their respective teams online.

Cole Shelton - November 18, 2025

Valentina Shevchenko has fired back at Amanda Nunes. After Shevchenko defended her flyweight title in a one-sided decision win over Zhang Weili at UFC 322, Nunes claimed she would drop down to flyweight to beat Shevchenko up again. It was a bold comment, and following her win, Shevchenko welcomed the challenge and fired back at Nunes.

Curtis Calhoun - November 18, 2025

UFC CEO Dana White recounted an incident between him and Francis Ngannou at the height of their bad blood. UFC CEO Dana White and former heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, once business partners in the promotion, are now distant adversaries. Things between White and Ngannou have grown tense over the past five years, resulting in Ngannou’s release from the UFC in early 2023.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - November 18, 2025

Bo Nickal had the best performance of his pro MMA career at UFC 322, and one MMA legend thinks title aspirations are back on. Nickal had been under heavy scrutiny following a decision win over Paul Craig and a TKO defeat to Reinier de Ridder. He returned to Madison Square Garden, the same venue that saw fans boo him after defeating Craig, to face Rodolfo Vieira this past Saturday. Nickal scored a head kick knockout in the third round.

Harry Kettle - November 18, 2025

UFC analyst Daniel Cormier has given his thoughts on Shavkat Rakhmonov possibly challenging Islam Makhachev. It’s been almost a year since we have seen Shavkat Rakhmonov compete inside the Octagon, when he extended his unbeaten record with a nice win over Ian Machado Garry. While many still believe he is the rightful number one contender for the world title, others feel as if he needs to earn his way back to that spot given his time away from the cage.

Harry Kettle - November 18, 2025

UFC star Sean O’Malley has explained why he feels bad for Jack Della Maddalena in the wake of his UFC 322 defeat. On Saturday night, Jack Della Maddalena was unable to keep hold of his UFC welterweight championship. He was beaten pretty comprehensively by Islam Makhachev in the main event of UFC 322, with Islam becoming a two-weight world champion as a result of his victory.