MMA News

Justin Golightly - February 8, 2018

While Dana White is talking about still making a rematch between TJ Dillashaw and Cody Garbrandt, Dillashaw’s trainer Duane Ludwig is still pushing for the Demetrious Johnson superfight. It makes sense considering Johnson himself has said they’re in negotiations for co-main event of UFC 226 with Stipe Miocic and Daniel Cormier. As with most things, it’s probably both fighters wanting the money they deserve that is stalling things, but Ludwig says that no matter what the obstacles, this fight needs to happen for the future of MMA. “[TJ Dillashaw]’s a ninja. That’s why he’s the champion and that’s why he’s going to fight Demetrious [Johnson]. Demetrious, where you at buddy? C’mon, Demetrious. Let’s make this happen. Whether I’m TJ’s trainer, or friend, or instructor, or Sensei or not, right? For me, just as a martial art enthusiast, I want to see that fight happen to see who truly is the best mixed martial artist.”

Tom Taylor - February 8, 2018

Last weekend, in the co-main event of the UFC’s return to Belem, Brazil’s Priscila Cachoeira was brutalized by the far more experienced Valentina Shevchenko en route to a second-round submission loss. In the wake of this brutal fight, there has been widespread criticism of referee Mario Yamasaki. In the eyes of many fans and pundits, the referee should have stopped the fight much earlier. UFC President Dana White was particularly critical of Yamasaki post-fight. Priscilla Cachoeira, you showed so much heart and toughness in that fight. I’m honored to have you fight in the UFC. Unfortunately the ref is there to protect you and Mario DID NOT do that. This isn’t his first disgusting performance in the octagon. Another unfortunate thing is that i can’t do anything about I️t only the Brazilian commission can and i am hoping after this scary, incompetent showing he hopefully will never set foot in that Octagon again. Strikes landed was 230-3.

Tom Taylor - February 8, 2018

It’s now been almost two years since Brock Lesnar’s last mixed martial arts bout, a July 2016 defeat of Mark Hunt, which was ultimately ruled a no-contest when he tested positive for the banned substance clomiphene. From the sounds of it, however, Lesnar could make another walk to the Octagon before all is said and done.  UFC President Dana White addressed the possibility of another Brock Lesnar UFC fight on the latest episode of UFC Tonight.

Tom Taylor - February 8, 2018

UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley is hoping his next fight will be with long-time lightweight contender Nate Diaz. And while there have been some positive signs that this fight could actually happen, it certainly doesn’t seem like it’s close to being made official.

Drake Riggs - February 7, 2018

“He’s awful. He’s terrible. This is what’s alarming, ‘I allowed Priscila [Cachoeira] to be a warrior and keep fighting’. That is not your job as a referee. We don’t need you to dictate who’s a warrior and who’s not a warrior. That is not your call. She was in serious trouble and she was so outclassed it’s not even funny. Your job is the safety. I don’t need Mario Yamasaki deciding who’s a warrior or not. Shut the f*ck up and save those fighters so they can continue their career and live to fight another day.

Drake Riggs - February 7, 2018

UPDATE: Dana White says Tyron Woodley vs. Nate Diaz isn't happening, but a Woodley vs Rafael Dos Anjos is the fight the UFC is trying to make. https://t.co/yAIKjR1ZHs — FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) February 8, 2018

Drake Riggs - February 7, 2018

This isn’t the first we’ve heard of the possible bantamweight title fight matchup between Raquel Pennington and the champion, Amanda Nunes. In fact, the fight was apparently on it’s way to getting finalized for UFC 219 at the end of 2017 but before the bout agreements could be signed, Pennington got into a nasty car crash that obviously put her first career title shot on hold. Pennington has since stated that a May return would be most likely for her. Damon Martin reports that the discussions have fired back up to get this 135-pound title fight back in place.

Drake Riggs - February 7, 2018

“I think that should be my next fight [TJ Dillashaw]. But…they(the UFC) play weird games where, they want to give TJ Dillashaw a little bit of an easier fight because he doesn’t want to fight somebody hard right after he won the title, he wants the easy fight. He wants to fight someone that he knows he can keep the belt a little longer before he gets a really hard fight. Whereas I go TJ Dillashaw, Urijah Faber, Cody Garbrandt and then I lose the belt.

Justin Golightly - February 7, 2018

There has been a lot on mixed opinions and controversy since Valentina Shevchenko’s domination against Priscila Cachoeira at UFC Belem. So much so, that Shevchenko’s amazing performance has taken a back seat to referee and corner criticism. Rose Namajunas has put in many hours with ‘The Bullet’ so she was watching the fight closely. She recently opened up about her thoughts on if they fight should have been stopped or not. If it was her? She definitely would have wanted the towel threw in. “That [late stoppage is] a touchy subject. I think clearly you saw that [Priscila Cachoeira] wasn’t going to improve her position [against Valentina Shevchenko]. So, you could definitely make the argument for that was a little too long.  […] I told my corner [Trevor Whitman] that if I’m lookin’ like that in a fight, the just throw in the towel for me, but that’s my personal choice. Those strikes on the canvas – in certain positions they weren’t that bad – but when you’re in full mount and somebody is raining down punches on you, your head is hitting the canvas too so it’s like double impact.”

Justin Golightly - February 7, 2018

After UFC 222 was put in major jeopardy with Max Holloway’s leg injury, the UFC was scrambling 100mph in order to save the card. They were trying to get TJ Dillashaw to defend his title against Cody Garbrandt, while keeping Frankie Edgar on the card as the co-main in a non-title fight. Even Nate Diaz was in the running to jump on. It looks like now the UFC are trying to throw Cris Cyborg on the card to defend her women’s UFC featherweight title against former Invicta FC bantamweight champ Yana Kunitskaya. There are deals in place to have Cris Cyborg vs. Yana Kunitskaya for the women’s 145 belt headline UFC 222 on 3/3 w/ Frankie Edgar vs. Brian Ortega as the co-main, per multiple sources. Not 100% finalized but that’s the current direction and it’s looking promising at the moment.

Tom Taylor - February 7, 2018

Last night, UFC welterweight champ Tyron Woodley divulged to ESPN‘s Brett Okamoto that he believes his next fight will be against Nate Diaz. “I think that fight will happen,” he said. “I think it will happen this year. I think it’s way more likely than people realize. There are conversations about Nate and I fighting in July. The UFC has offered Nate that fight. They just have to make it worth his while.”

Justin Golightly - February 7, 2018

It’s fight night. You’re sitting at home watching all the violence and drama, scrolling through Twitter. A crack echoes through the arena and after your fire emoji reactions to the knockout eventually disappear down your feed, the photos roll in and you relive it all over again. It all goes down in a blur of flesh and blood for the fighters in the cage, but the camera freezes the blip in time. They are both extremely different and unique experiences. In the Venn diagram of fighting and combat photography, UFC’s Mike Jackson exists right in the overlap. “I loved taking pictures as a kid. After some time in fighting, I knew I couldn’t compete forever and needed something to fall back on. I knew I wanted to work in combat sports but my degree is in a different field. Thinking more like an artist — I do feel fighting is an art — I picked up my camera and started shooting.” — Mike Jackson speaking to BJ PENN’s own Justin Golightly.

Russell Sai - February 7, 2018

For Nate Diaz fans, it seems like things are looking good for a return to the Octagon. With Nate’s last fight taking place in August 2016, which was his rematch with Conor McGregor, it has been far too long for many fans and it seems like the younger Diaz brother’s hunger for more competition is getting to be too much. ESPN’s Brett Okamoto caught up with Nate on Tuesday night and the man who proudly represents the 209 shared the latest on where things are at for a return.

Tom Taylor - February 7, 2018

Earlier this month, the UFC announced its plans for an April 21 return to Atlantic City, New Jersey. Though the card is still some distance away, it’s already starting to come together. The latest bout that’s reportedly in the works for this Atlantic City date is a middleweight scrap between knockout artists Uriah Hall and Paulo Costa. This bout was first reported by Raphael Marinho of Combate.

Justin Golightly - February 7, 2018

The status of UFC great Georges St-Pierre is still up in the air after the grueling process of moving up to middleweight contributed to contacting ulcerative colitis. This weekend, Luke Rockhold and Yoel Romero will be fighting for the interim version of the undisputed title St-Pierre handed over to Robert Whittaker. We knew that if GSP came back, it’d probably be at his old welterweight home. …But that’s if he came back. That question may have been partly answered today from the leader of the Danaher Death Squad, John Danaher. He posted a statement after a training session between St-Pierre and former foe Jake Shields. “How would you do if you had to fight yourself? This is always an interesting hypothetical question — in the case of Georges St-Pierre and Jake Shields it is actually a practical question. I have never seen two athletes so closely matched in skill level, tactics, technique etc. in ground grappling. When they spar each other the only difference I see is their appearance and accent — other than that — identical. It’s great to see Mr. St-Pierre back in the gym despite his battle with ulcerative colitis.”

bjpenndotcom - February 7, 2018

var isDesktop = document.documentElement.clientWidth > 768; var player; if (isDesktop){ player = "https://content.jwplatform.com/players/qvd6RWUa-YTQFP9LQ.js"; } else { player = "https://content.jwplatform.com/players/qvd6RWUa-bT8DYt4D.js"; } document.write(''); Last weekend, in the co-main event of UFC 221, Chicago’s Curtis Blaydes burst into heavyweight title contention with an impressive, unanimous decision win over veteran knockout artist Mark Hunt.

Tom Taylor - February 7, 2018

Yesterday afternoon, UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley once again expressed interest in a showdown with long-time lightweight contender Nate Diaz. “I think that fight will happen,” Woodley told ESPN. “I think it will happen this year. I think it’s way more likely than people realize. There are conversations about Nate and I fighting in July. The UFC has offered Nate that fight. They just have to make it worth his while.

Tom Taylor - February 7, 2018

It’s no secret that UFC President Dana White is an extremely wealthy man, and that’s he’s willing to drop serious sums of money when the mood strikes. White’s latest extravagant purchase was documented on the show Pawn Stars. On a recent episode, the UFC boss enters the famous pawn shop in search of weapons for his new “weapons room.”