MMA News

Justin Golightly - December 23, 2017

When we enter into the UFC’s 2018 year, there are a lot of things up in the air. But hey, it’s always good to end on a cliffhanger, right? One of the big mysteries of the new year is just what Conor McGregor is going to be doing. He’s been seen training jiu jitsu and straight up said he’s fighting MMA next, but he could always change his mind. One of the many fighters in three divisions that are waiting for McGregor’s return is interim UFC lightweight champ Tony Ferguson. While we get our last contender fight of the year with Khabib Nurmagomedov and Edson Barboz at UFC 219, Ferguson waits to see if he’ll unify the belts. With this in mind, he sends perhaps his last message of the year to the Irish ‘Champ Champ’. “Happy Holidays My Hooligans” Papi Chulo Cucuy Says #SeasonsBeatings & Happy New New Year! #DefendorVacate Friggen’ Potatoe Chip Eatin’ McNuggets Dunkin’, Paper Champ Dead Beat. It’s Sad To See Your Fans W/ Me @Thenotoriousmma #VacateBitch #NoBalls 🖕🏽😎 #InGloriousNotorious pic.twitter.com/YcHwmnnAiX

Justin Golightly - December 23, 2017

Back at UFC Fresno and UFC Winnipeg, there were some pivotal moments in the UFC’s featherweight division. Undefeated Brian Ortega came in cool, calm, and collected and it paid off. He finished Cub Swanson in the second round with a guillotine choke, making it so the UFC could no longer deny him a shot at gold. Meanwhile, Josh Emmett showed up short notice against the very game Ricardo Lamas, knocking him out in the first round and shocking the crowd. As the new king, don’t think Max Holloway wasn’t watching this unfold. He recently voiced his respect of their performances but was also quick to send out a warning. “I was impressed by the two wins by [Brian Ortega and Josh Emmett] – of course. Ortega finishes Cub – that’s impressive stuff. It’s always impressive when you finish someone. Finishing anybody in the top 10, even the top five when we’re talking about those two guys, is amazing. We’re the best fighters in the world and you get to finish them, that’s always cool to see. Me and Ortega are two young kids, so it should be fun whenever that happens. Josh Emmett came in and was able to shake it up real quick. I’m excited for the future. A lot of people are saying that one of those guys are going to give me a run. I can’t wait. I’m glad and I’m looking forward to the challenges. All these guys are cupcakes and there’s some new flavors, and I want my taste of them.”

Justin Golightly - December 23, 2017

Francis Ngannou and Stipe Miocic will be decided who is the baddest man on the planet at UFC Boston, but if Daniel Cormier successfully defends his light heavyweight belt on the same card, he could move up and test that title as well. He was asked about going back to heavyweight for a giant fight to close out his career in a recent interview and said it’d be ‘the most amazing thing in the world.’ Not only that, but it seems like he’s thought about it a lot. His coach Javier Mendez opened up about the idea and thinks it could happen, with Cain Velasquez’s permission that is. “Yeah, [Daniel Cormier moving up to fight for the heavyweight title is] a fun theory too and it could be a realistic theory, and this is how it would work out if it did happen, okay. Cain [Velasquez] would talk to DC or DC would go to Cain, he’d go, ‘Hey, Cain, I wanna fight for the title against Stipe, do you have a problem for me going that one shot?’ And if Cain says yes, which I’m sure if that’s what they agreed on, then yeah, that would happen. That’s not far-fetched. It really isn’t, because that could be something that could happen. But it would be between DC and Cain, they would make that decision jointly together.”

Drake Riggs - December 22, 2017

One of Scotland’s finest may be on their way out of the UFC and MMA in general. Stevie Ray last fought at home in Glasgow last July when he battled against Paul “The Irish Dragon” Felder in a losing effort. This was Ray’s last fight on his UFC contract. Obviously, the plan was to get a big win at home and start negotiations. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen and now we’re here, wondering whether or not Ray will even fight again at all. This week, he spoke with Ariel Helwani on the MMA Hour about how he’s feeling and his frustrating situation.

Drake Riggs - December 22, 2017

A pretty odd pairing to say the least! Strange enough alone just considering the difference in weight with Francis Ngannou being a Heavyweight and Uriah Hall a Middleweight. It’s especially odd when considering how different each’s styles are compared to that of their upcoming opponents. But hey, sparring is sparring and surely not many are too willing to spar with Ngannou these days. But damn, would you just look at the big man move!

Drake Riggs - December 22, 2017

Looks like the UFC may have heard enough of the complaints about the Reebok deal! Many fans and fighters have been highly critical of the deal since it was made in 2015. And now as we head into 2018, they are making some well-needed changes. Instead of just getting rid of the deal altogether(as a majority wanted and probably will still want) they are tweaking it so that the pay structure from Reebok is enhanced. The UFC sent the new guidelines regarding the change out to the entire roster and here’s the difference: Fighters who have had three or less fights under the UFC currently get $2,500. The new guidelines state that those fighters will now be able to earn $3,500 per fight. Fighters with four or five appearances will make $5,000. Those with four or five currently get $2,500 as well as the three or less. UFC Chief Operating Officer Lawrence Epstein spoke about the new changes.

Russell Ess - December 22, 2017

Remember when UFC superstar Conor McGregor tweeted that he had retired last year? Well, we all know that didn’t end up being true and it would have been a shame if “The Notorious” hung up the gloves back then as he has accomplished some historical feats since. If McGregor retired in April of last year like he tweeted, he would not have gone on to become the only fighter in history to be a simultaneous two-division UFC champion. McGregor also would not have made the biggest payday of his career by transitioning to the boxing ring for the money fight with Floyd Mayweather.

Justin Golightly - December 22, 2017

After Nate Diaz spit flames on his longest interview since May, the world once again was talking about the Stockton soldier. For over 45 minutes, he talked about everything from Conor McGregor, the UFC’s ‘propaganda machine’, and what it would take to get him back in the Octagon. People have jumped on his quote of ‘ask nicely’ with a Sage Northcutt meme that had Team Alpha Male laughing, now kickboxing vet turned UFC fighter Gokhan Saki has joined the campaign to get Diaz to return to MMA. Dear Diaz @NateDiaz209 ,

Russell Ess - December 22, 2017

“Ask nicely motherf**kers. Ask nicely. I’m talking about the organization, the fighters. And make it a big deal, because I’m not trying to just sign a contract just cause it’s a good idea for you guys.” Those are the words from Nate Diaz speaking with the Outside The Box podcast on getting called out by fighters and from the UFC who have been trying to get him into the Octagon for a classic Diaz scrap. Nate stated that at this point in his career, he doesn’t need to fight anyone but is willing to fight any opponent if it makes sense.

Justin Golightly - December 22, 2017

Orcs fighting in the UFC? ‘It’s never going to happen,’ said Dana White in a tongue-in-cheek flashback to when he made the same statement about women. Max ‘Blue Carnage’ Carlyle is just an Orc who wants to fulfill his dreams of becoming the greatest UFC heavyweight on the planet in a sport that doesn’t want him. If you’re left scratching your head, don’t worry because a lot of people are. What you’re seeing is a clever tie-in to Will Smith’s new Netflix film called Bright, where he plays a cop alongside an Orc who dealing with the same sort of discrimination as our prospect Carlyle here. “One of the central aspects of why I wanted to make the movie was the flip of the social ladder. In our world [in Bright], the elves are the one-percenters. They are the haves. And the orcs are the have-nots. And humans are smashed in the middle. So, it was a great exploration for me to be able to play a character who was higher on the social ladder and to realize how everybody is looking for a sense of superiority.”

Justin Golightly - December 22, 2017

Conor McGregor has always been close to the members of his team. He’s stayed with them throughout his meteoric rise and intends on maintaining his loyalty no matter what. So after Artem Lobov was invited to train Russian special forces operatives at the Kremlin, McGregor was quick to praise his right-hand-man who calls a brother. Although, it wouldn’t be a proper public statement from McGregor unless is made fight fans and media raise their eyebrows. In his proud social media post, he alludes to a possible fight in Russia sometime in the future. “I am proud of my brother Artem Lobov. Inside the world famous Kremlin compound discussing and teaching our training methods to the Russian federal reserve on behalf of Russian President Vladimir Putin. One day soon I will visit Russia and potentially compete there for my Russian fans, alongside my brother Artem. Thank you to all our Russian supporters for recognizing our lifetime of hard work and supporting us along the entire way. Without effort, you can not get a fish out of the pond.” — Conor McGregor via his official Instagram.

Justin Golightly - December 22, 2017

In just a matter of a couple of days, it was revealed by Dana White that Floyd Mayweather was in talks with the UFC. Demetrious Johnson and a slew of other fighters were frothing at the mouth in order to welcome him to the Octagon, but directly after that, Mayweather squashed the news and said it’s not happening. Of course, this same back-and-forth occurred during the negotiations for his boxing match with Conor McGregor, so you never know where the truth actually is until something happens or it doesn’t. None of that seems to matter to the ultra dominant UFC flyweight champ, who is daring Mayweather to actually follow through with this thing and meet him in the cage. “I think [a fight with Floyd Mayweather] would go very well for me, obviously. I’m very well-rounded. It’s mixed martial arts. I would even do a handicap. I won’t even grapple with him. I won’t even go to the ground at all. I’ll get him in the clinch, bang up, hit him in the liver, kick him in the liver, take out his legs and work him. I found out that news from my management team. They were like, ‘Dude, Floyd Mayweather’s coming to the UFC. Call him out and let’s get this fight.’ I was like that’s your job, my job is to train and go out there and win the fights.”

Justin Golightly - December 22, 2017

There’s a serious chance for Holly Holm to shock the world once again at UFC 219. She’s confident she can do it, and her coaches believe she can do it as well. If she manages to take out Cris Cyborg, she’ll have beaten two of the number one female fighters on Earth. Knowing Cyborg’s track record and how long she has been dominant, if she does beat her, then Holly Holm is graciously willing to offer her an immediate rematch, just like she was going to do with Ronda Rousey. “Yes [I would give Cris Cyborg an immediate rematch if I beat her] and with Ronda [Rousey] I was open to a rematch as well, it’s just they didn’t know how long or when she would come back or if she would want to. And that’s when I said well I just don’t want to wait around. I’ll wait if you can tell me this is going to be within six months or whatever but I didn’t want to just be waiting around for that one fight. I want to be able to fight and train and live out my passion. I didn’t want it to be based around just one fighter. So I was welcome to the fact to rematch her, it’s just they didn’t have any answer if she really was going to come back and if she did, how long it would be.”

Drake Riggs - December 21, 2017

Just a month ago we saw “Super” Sage Northcutt in action at UFC Fight Night 120 in Norfolk, Virgina. We saw somewhat of a transformation in the already talented 21-year old prospect. Or at least a big leap in a continued growth. Northcutt took on and defeated Michael Quinones with ease on route to a unanimous decision. Controlling the fight wherever it went, Northcutt looked very improved compared to his three fights prior where he went 1-2 and even in that one win between the losses he was in some trouble early on. And now Northcutt is ready to continue to show his improvements as Brett Okamoto reports that his next bout is set for UFC Fight Night 126 in Austin, Texas. His opponent will be Thibault Gouti.

Drake Riggs - December 21, 2017

“Holly Holm can not knock anybody out with one punch… In boxing, she was wearing them down, throwing a lot of punches but she doesn’t have that one punch knockout. So, I told Cyborg, ‘do not underestimate her but that is something you may not have to be too concerned about.’. Of course, do not underestimate her because she is a great mover and she has a lot of ring intelligence. Also, beware of the southpaw, do a lot of sparring with southpaw as she is doing right now and always remember to try to lean more to the left instead of the right. Going to the right you can run into one of her strong weapons, which is her right. So think a little bit about that and I think she’s going to beat Holm. ” 

Drake Riggs - December 21, 2017

33-year old, Cincinnati, Ohio native, Daniel Straus is a two time Bellator Featherweight champion. He has been one of the lighter weights classes bigger names in Bellator for the better half of their existence. Currently riding a two-fight losing streak that started this year with a loss for his title at the time. An already bad 2017 has only gotten worse for Straus as it comes to a close. It was reported today by Bleacher Report that on Sunday, Straus got into a rather bad motorcycle accident.

Justin Golightly - December 21, 2017

It somehow seems like ages ago since Conor McGregor was screaming into the faces of everyone that he owned boxing. Just a handful of months ago, McGregor did the unthinkable and actually fought Floyd Mayweather in a boxing match. Both of them made an obscene amount of money and walked away from the ring to enjoy it all. The UFC’s self-proclaimed ‘Champ Champ’ did a lot of his training at the UFC’s Performance Institute in a ring emblazoned with the UFC and his own logo for McGregor Sports and Entertainment. However, today that ring sports new logo. The boxing ring is mine. pic.twitter.com/4lMwOXtPhT

Justin Golightly - December 21, 2017

Francis Ngannou is one fight away from fulfilling the prophecies of being the next big thing. He’s scheduled to fight Stipe Miocic for the UFC heavyweight title in Boston on January 20th. Coincidentally, on the same card as Daniel Cormier’s title defense against Volkan Oezdemir. Aside from one loss and one no contest to Jon Jones, DC is perfect in his career, both at light heavyweight and heavyweight. As his career reaches its peak and cuts get harder, Cormier could go back up to heavyweight to end his career with a bang. This could set up one of the biggest fights in UFC history. “It would be the most amazing thing in the world [to challenge the UFC heavyweight champion as my final fight], but that would take some thinking, some talking and a real solid plan to try to get back to the type of weight that I would need to compete against [Stipe Miocic or Francis Ngannou]. Because, again, I’m not going in there to lose and say I gave it my best shot. If I go in there with Miocic or Ngannou, I’m going to win. That’s just who I am. So that would just be me and my team really coming up with a solid plan on how I’m going to get up to a healthy, strong, 245, 235, 240 pounds to go and fight those dudes.”