MMA News

Justin Golightly - February 6, 2018

The Black Beast Derrick Lewis is set to return against Marcin Tybura at UFC Austin, but he’s still on a mission to flame Francis Ngannou and his muscles. Ngannou had his biggest test ever in his short career and came up short in an exhausting performance against Stipe Miocic. Even though he loss, he’s one of the very few heavyweights out of huge names not to be knocked out by the heavy-handed firefighter. It was a huge learning experience for the fighter, but Lewis claims history is bound to repeat itself unless Ngannou does something about his body. “I watched the highlights of the Francis [Ngannou] fight. I didn’t watch the fight cause I didn’t want to give Francis my money and pay for his pay-per-view. I seen the highlights and Stipe [Miocic] had him against the cage and Francis is on his knees and Stipe wasn’t putting that much pressure on him. All Francis had to do was stand straight up, and Francis couldn’t even stand straight up. I know I wouldn’t just let Stipe hold me down like that. I knew he wasn’t going to walk through Stipe. It was a five-round fight and Stipe is a good wrestler. I knew that’s what Stipe was going to go in there and do. Ngannou had too much muscle. He was going to gas out quick as hell.”

Justin Golightly - February 6, 2018

Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov. They’ve been on a collision path since 2015. A lot has been said, but none of it was able to be backed up. This will be the fourth time the two will attempt to get inside the Octagon and finally go at it. You’d think that after all that, the scrap would lose steam, but not this one. Ferguson and Nurmagomedov’s fight is still one of the very best lightweight battles in the world. Especially after Khabib’s triumphant and dominant return. Which is why manager Ali Abdel-Aziz is worried about Ferguson. No, seriously. “I feel sorry for Tony Ferguson, because on April 7th, Tony Ferguson is probably never gonna fight again. I’m concerned for his well-being, I’m serious. I’m not just saying that to promote a fight. I’m concerned for him. I’m hearing some reports — and I respect Eddie Bravo, he’s a legend — I’m hearing that [Ferguson would] accept, he’d be more than happy for Khabib to take him down. And I’ll tell you something, [Nurmagomedov]’s not gonna be a normal human being. He’ll be in trouble. Because if he accepts takedown from Khabib and he will take him down, he will disfigure his whole entire face.”

Tom Taylor - February 6, 2018

Late last week, we learned that UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway had been forced out of his UFC 222 main event title fight with Frankie “The Answer” Edgar. With this unfortunate development, the promotion began a frantic search for a replacement main event. According to Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting.com, one option is a bout between Edgar and fellow featherweight contender Brian Ortega. Apparently, however, this fight could be pushed down the lineup if the UFC is able to book another title fight for the card.

Justin Golightly - February 6, 2018

Out of nowhere before UFC 219, all of us thought that Nate Diaz was going to march scowl-faced into the Octagon once again to fight none other than Tyron Woodley. It never ended up happening, despite Woodley relentlessly putting Diaz on blast with what he saw as hypocritical statements. Now it looks like we can get our hopes all up again. Nate Diaz recently said he was interested in saving UFC 222, but Woodley actually has his eye a fight with the Stockton soldier later this year. “I think that fight [with Nate Diaz] will happen. 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. I think I’ll fight Nate this year, and I think it will be my return to the Octagon. If I had to bet the house on it, that’s my next opponent. In four weeks? No. I wouldn’t fight him. If we’re fighting, I’m pretty sure it would have to be for my belt.”

Justin Golightly - February 6, 2018

With Michael Bisping’s career coming to a close, it’s been difficult to say the least to find an opponent for his swan song. With tons of big names at middleweight locked up or ineligible, it looked like the UFC finally had it all put together with Rashad Evans at UFC London. To our surprise — as well as Evans — it didn’t work out. The former UFC light heavyweight champion recently opened up about how he’s not sure why the fight isn’t happening, but doesn’t blame Bisping one bit. “I thought [the fight with Michael Bisping was going to happen] too, man. I got the call and I thought it was going to happen, but then things didn’t work out on the negotiation side between the UFC and Bisping. I don’t exactly know what it was about, but I guess the talks just broke down after the agreement happened. I think it was contract stuff. I think Bisping is getting to the end of his contract and that he’s been talking about retirement. I’m not too exactly 100-percent sure about what they were talking about.”

Justin Golightly - February 6, 2018

You may be lucky enough to already know about ‘Style Bender’ Israel Adesanya, but most tuning into the UFC 221 card in Perth this weekend probably won’t. …But they most likely will be trying to learn how to pronounce his name soon after he steps into the Octagon for the first time. This 28-year old prospect has all the ingredients to make a breakout UFC star if he brings it altogether in his debut. Although, to call Adesanya a ‘prospect’ may seem to the uninitiated that he hasn’t been tested or he’s an amateur. This is absolutely not the case. “I look forward to this moment in time. It’s easy to sit on your ass and type. Only a chosen few on this planet have the balls (and ovaries) to say what they wanna do, put everything on the line in front of millions, and do it despite what others think. It’s been a long road to get here, man. In 2005, you couldn’t pay me enough to hop in a cage and fight another trained killer. F-cking plot twist, huh? They laughed at me when I said Imma’ be in the UFC one day. Where are they now? Point being, their opinion is none of your business. Let them hate. They hate us cause they anus.” — Israel Adesanya via his official Instagram.

Tom Taylor - February 6, 2018

MMA can be a brutal sport. It’s a game of mountainous highs and chasmal lows, of unpredictable ups and downs, of clashing expectations and realities, and sometimes, its pressures can crack even the most iron-willed competitors. In a recent post to Instagram, UFC welterweight veteran Nicolas Dalby shared his story of being broken by the sport, and of his journey back from the brink. Fighting. It’s something we all do. We fight bullies at school. We fight to earn a living. We fight through sickness(mental & physical). We fight our inner daemons. We fight with our significant others, friends and family. We fight for the rights we believe in. We all fight our own fights, small and big ones. Every single day! For me, one of my biggest fights are coming up, literally and figuratively. Literally because I have committed to step foot in a cage to fight again after 1½ years away from the sport, after something that ended in me suffering 2 defeats in a row, the first ones in over 10 years of competitive fighting. But also figuratively. Figuratively because I have been battling a deep depression which resulted in alcoholism, apathy and hurtful behaviour towards the people I hold the dearest. Experiencing all of that and putting it behind me has been a very bumpy detour away from and back to the main-road that leads in the right direction. How do you come back after a downfall like that? Can you imagine the self-doubt? Can my body still handle a gruelling fight camp? Is my mind strong enough to handle the sessions where nothing is working, doubt sneaks in and the lingering injuries that undoubtedly lie ahead play with your head? Am I strong enough physically & mentally to not just take the fight but to actually go in there and unleash the hell & fury I have in me when believe in myself and I’m running on all cylinders(plus nitro)? Those are the questions that will get answered before summer arrives. Maybe I’ll get a major injury in the lead up to the fight. Maybe things won’t “click” when I’m finally in the cage. Maybe I will lose the fight. But theres only one way to find out. And that’s by fucking doing it! And doing it 110%! This is a fight to determine my future. Now is the time to prove to myself, my girlfriend, my friends, my family & the rest of the world what I’m made of. That I am going to follow up to the promises I made myself. And that is the real fight. If I do that, do the very best I can. Then I will win the fight in the cage. And the fight for my life! #LokomotivoDalby | #RoadToRedemption | #ThePhoenixWillRise | #FrateTrane

Justin Golightly - February 6, 2018

As the UFC and combat sports in general rockets into the future. It’s more important than ever to preserve the history of these fights so they aren’t lost in time. New fans are constantly pouring in an cycled through generations, then separated into eras. There are the group of people who became fans after the first season of The Ultimate Fighter, then there are fans who were drawn to the sport like moths from the bright lights of Ronda Rousey and Conor McGregor. No matter when someone got into the chaotic spectacle of MMA, researching everything they can about Anderson Silva is a mandatory homework assignment. The build up going into this fight appeared to be animosity free. But that quickly changed at the weigh ins.

Tom Taylor - February 6, 2018

Shortly after his recent split decision win over Eryk Anders, former UFC light heavyweight champion and middleweight title challenger Lyoto Machida called out former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping. “That’s a fight that should’ve happened a couple times and it didn’t,” Machida said at the UFC Belem post-fight presser. “I think we both matured together in this sport, so I think fight between Michael Bisping and myself would mean a lot.

Tom Taylor - February 6, 2018

If things had gone according to the original plan, UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker would be defending his title against Luke Rockhold at UFC 221 this weekend. Unfortunately, Whittaker was forced out of this fight with some pretty severe health problems, and replaced by Yoel Romero, who will now battle Rockhold for the interim title. From the sounds of it, it wasn’t easy for Whittaker to withdraw from this fight. The champ has fought injured before, and were it not for the firm guidance of his team, he may have attempted to fight through his current health issues. He recounted the process that led to his UFC 221 withdrawal on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour:

Tom Taylor - February 6, 2018

Last week, UFC featherweight champ Max Holloway was forced out of his UFC 222 title fight with Frankie Edgar, leaving the card without a main event. From there, the UFC began a desperate scramble to find a suitable replacement fight. One of the options was a rematch between bantamweight champ TJ Dillashaw and former champ Cody Garbrandt, who fought back in November, in a fight that saw Dillashaw brave an early scare to win by knockout. While this potential rematch generated plenty of buzz, Dillashaw was pretty quick to express his complete disinterest in it. He did just beat Garbrandt, after all, and with a newborn son at home, and grand plans for a superfight with flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson in the works for July, the timing doesn’t make a lot of sense for him.

Drake Riggs - February 5, 2018

.@Rampage4real believes cornermen should throw in the towel more often in MMA: "I don't see nothing wrong with throwing in the towel if a guy is getting f*cked up really bad." Watch #TheMMAHour live: https://t.co/11sYrEm5Ug pic.twitter.com/216ZwzozGq — MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) February 5, 2018

Drake Riggs - February 5, 2018

The unfortunate news broke over the weekend that the featherweight title fight between former lightweight champion, Frankie Edgar and featherweight champion, Max Holloway has fallen through once again. It was Holloway this time that was forced out with a leg injury. The fight was scheduled to headline UFC 222. Currently, the UFC is still looking to find a new headliner. Edgar is still wanting to stay on the card regardless of opponent and the UFC appears to be trying to set up a fight between him and Brian Ortega. Other options have included a rematch between bantamweight champion, TJ Dillashaw and Cody Garbrandt and very recently…Garbrandt vs Edgar.

Drake Riggs - February 5, 2018

Two of Poland’s finest fighters across all divisions happen to be the former strawweight champion, Joanna Jedrzejczyk and the former challenger, Karolina Kowalkiewicz. Since they met each other in the octagon at UFC 205, they have each gone 1-1 in their two fights that followed. Ironically enough, each of their upcoming bouts take place on the same night at UFC 223 in Brooklyn, New York on April 7.

Chris Taylor - February 5, 2018

Frankie Edgar will fight anyone at any weight class and a former bantamweight champion is game! ESPN’s Brett Okamoto broke some very unfortunate news Friday when he announced that current UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway had suffered an injury and was no longer able to defend his belt against Frankie Edgar at UFC 222.

Chris Taylor - February 5, 2018

Mario Yamasaki issues statement following controversial co-main event at UFC Belem. Mixed martial arts referee Mario Yamasaki faced a ton of criticism following his controversial stoppage in the co-main event of last weekend’s UFC Fight Night 125 event in Belem, Brazil.

Tom Taylor - February 5, 2018

Last weekend, Priscila Cachoeira was brutalized by the far more experienced Valentina Shevchenko en route to a second-round submission loss. Cachoeira’s loss was so decisive that many fans and pundits have been berating her corner for not throwing in the towel mid-fight, thereby allowing an undeniably spacey Mario Yamasaki to let the bloodshed continue for far longer than necessary. According to Priscila Cachoeira herself, however, criticism of her corner and coaching staff is unwarranted. The reason her team didn’t throw in the towel is because they understood where her physical limits were, and she just wasn’t there yet.

Tom Taylor - February 5, 2018

Former UFC bantamweight title challenger Valentina Shevchenko could not have been more impressive in her Saturday night flyweight debut, out-landing her opponent Priscila Cachoeira by a 230-3 margin en-route to a second-round submission win. Regrettably, much of the buzz surrounding this fight has been negative, as the widespread perception is that referee Mario Yamasaki let this one-sided beatdown go on for far longer than it should have. 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.