MMA News

Tom Taylor - January 22, 2018

UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson, who owns the record for most consecutive title defenses of any champion in UFC history, is currently recovering from a surgery. That said, he’s already eyeing his next fight. While Johnson has expressed some disinterest in a potential fight with bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw in the past, he seems to have come around. Speaking during a MetroPCS Q&A in the buildup to UFC 220, Johnson announced that he’s hoping to fight Dillashaw this July, on a big card in the midst of the UFC’s International Fight Week.

Tom Taylor - January 22, 2018

On April 7, interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson and undefeated contender Khabib Nurmagomedov will battle for a lightweight title. Will it be the interim title currently owned by Ferguson, or the undisputed title currently owned by Conor McGregor? Dana White was incredibly unclear when asked about this at a press conference in Boston, refusing to say whether the UFC will strip McGregor of his undisputed title, but also assuring the winner of this Ferguson-Nurmagomedov fight will be the champion… Whatever the case, Khabib Nurmagomedov has some interesting ideas if he wins. For one, the undefeated grappler seems to be considering denying Conor McGregor a shot at the title upon his long-awaited return to MMA.

Chris Taylor - January 21, 2018

Dana White discusses Francis Ngannou’s first UFC setback and what could come next for Stipe Miocic. "I don't see why he couldn't fight at heavyweight."@danawhite asked @dc_mma if he'd be interested in a title shot with @StipeMiocicUFC. Can we get this, please? #UFC220 https://t.co/FljOglKMIB

Chris Taylor - January 21, 2018

UFC 220 Reebok Outfitting Payouts The octagon returned to Boston last night for UFC 220.

Chris Taylor - January 21, 2018

Quinton “Rampage” Jackson issues statement following loss to Chael Sonnen. Former UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson suffered a unanimous decision loss to Chael Sonnen in the headliner of last night’s Bellator 192 event.

Tom Taylor - January 21, 2018

Last night, UFC heavyweight Stipe Miocic made easy work of surging knockout artist Francis Ngannou, defending his title with a lopsided, unanimous decision. If you watched the pre-fight promos for this fight, however, this result might have come as a bit of a surprise. In the buildup to this fight, many members of the MMA community noted that the UFC hype machine seemed to be focused on Ngannou. Even Miocic was aware of this, admitting he felt a bit “disrespected.”

Tom Taylor - January 21, 2018

Last night, in the main event of UFC 220, hulking French-Cameroonian knockout artist Francis Ngannou lumbered into the cage with the goal of defeating Stipe Miocic and winning the UFC heavyweight title. In the end, however, the massively hyped Ngannou was outclassed by the champion, whose cardio and wrestling were simply too much to deal with. Now, it’s back to the drawing board for the undeniably talented Ngannou. Though he certainly has some holes in his game that need filling, it seems he’s keen to learn from this loss, and use it as fuel for his continued evolution.

Tom Taylor - January 21, 2018

If things had gone according to plan, UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker would have attempted the first defense of his title against Luke Rockhold at UFC 221, this February 10 in Perth, Australia. Unfortunately, Whittaker was forced out of this contest with health problems, and replaced by his most recent opponent, Yoel Romero, who will battle Romero for the interim belt in the meantime. At first, the circumstances of Whittaker’s health problems weren’t clear. Now, however, UFC President Dana White has shed some light on the situation, and it doesn’t sound good.

Tom Taylor - January 21, 2018

Last night, Bellator MMA returned to our screens with Bellator 192, arguably one of its biggest cards to date. In the main event, Chael Sonnen defeated Quinton “Rampage” Jackson by unanimous decision, advancing to the second round of the Bellator heavyweight Grand Prix in the process.

Tom Taylor - January 20, 2018

Last night, in the main event of UFC 220, Stipe Miocic made a record-setting third-straight defense of the UFC heavyweight title, derailing the hype train of French-Cameroonian knockout artist Francis Ngannou with a dominant unanimous decision win. In the buildup to this fight, many members of the MMA community noted that the promotion seemed to hope Ngannou would win the title, evidently sensing it had found it’s next cash cow. Miocic made no secret of the fact that he shared this opinion, admitting he felt disrespected by the promotion.

Tom Taylor - January 20, 2018

Last night, in the main event of the stacked Bellator 192, three-time UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen advanced to the second round of Bellator’s exciting heavyweight Grand Prix with a unanimous decision win over former UFC light heavyweight champ Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. Here’s how the MMA community reacted to Sonnen’s impressive defeat of Rampage.

Tom Taylor - January 20, 2018

Last night, in the co-main event of Bellator 192, Rory MacDonald finally stepped into the cage with Douglas Lima to battle for the Bellator welterweight title. Though Lima nearly chopped MacDonald’s leg off with a brutal onslaught of calf-kicks, the Canadian ultimately came out on top, winning the Bellator welterweight strap with a competitive unanimous decision victory. Here’s how the MMA community (and a few others) reacted to Rory MacDonald’s title-winning defeat of Douglas Lima.

Tom Taylor - January 20, 2018

In the main event of UFC 220, Stipe Miocic attempted a record-setting third-straight defense of the UFC heavyweight title. His opponent was surging French-Cameroonian knockout artist Francis Ngannou. Much like Volkan Oezdemir before him, the challenger Francis Ngannou came out extremely aggressive. And much like Daniel Cormier before him, Miocic weathered the storm, defended intelligently, and picked his shots. Once he’d survived his challenger’s initial barrage, Miocic began to land, and even seemed to wobble his challenger on several occasions. Despite several scares, however, champion and challenger survived to the second.

Russell Sai - January 20, 2018

Daniel Cormier showed the world why he is the UFC light heavyweight champion on Saturday night in Boston at UFC 220. “DC” was matched up against the quickly rising star Volkan Oezdemir, who went into the title fight unbeaten in the UFC. Cormier was able to walk through an early offensive attack from “No Time” in the early part of the first round and then turned things up as the round came to and end. Cormier ended up finishing Oezdemir in the second round by TKO.

Tom Taylor - January 20, 2018

In the co-main event of UFC 220, UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier attempted to defend his title opposite Swiss knockout artist Volkan “No Time” Oezdemir. Though Oezdemir came out swinging, and seemed to frustrate the champ with his range and size, Cormier showed no fear, wading into a firefight with his stone-fisted challenger, and remarkably, wobbling him with a punch. From there, the champ turned to his world-class wrestling, executing a takedown, and threatening with a deep rear-naked choke in the final seconds of the round.

Tom Taylor - January 20, 2018

While UFC 220 is dominating the attention of most MMA fans tonight, Bellator is also back in action, promoting one of its best shows to date in Bellator 192. In the co-main event of this stacked card, Bellator welterweight champion Douglas Lima attempted to defend his title against his fiercest adversary to date: former UFC welterweight title challenger Rory MacDonald.  Round one began with MacDonald controlling the distance, backing the champion up with jabs and a head-kick. Midway through the first round the Canadian completed a takedown. From there, he sat in Lima’s guard, raining down ground-and-pound, but eating a few shots from the bottom in the process. Eventually, the referee stood the pair up with 10 seconds left in the round, but both survived to the bell.

Tom Taylor - January 20, 2018

While UFC 220 is dominating the attention of most MMA fans tonight, Bellator is also back in action, promoting one of its best shows to date in Bellator 192. In the second bout of the Bellator 192 main card, decorated wrestling transplant Aaron Pico delivered yet another incredible knockout, executing Shane Krutchen with a body shot from hell. See this ultra-violent KO below:

Tom Taylor - January 20, 2018

Ever since former pro wrestler CM Punk was dominated in his MMA debut by Mickey Gall, we’ve been wondering if he’ll everget back into the cage. From the sounds of it, Punk will not only participate in a second bout, but it’ll actually occur in the UFC’s Octagon, where he came up short in his debut. UFC President Dana White gave a decisive update on the CM Punk situation in the lead-up to tonight’s UFC 220 card. “I like that guy. He’s a good dude,” White told the AP of the pro wrestler’s future in the UFC (h/t New York Post). “He wants one more. He wants to get another shot. I’m going to give it to him.”