MMA News

Justin Golightly - October 11, 2017

Ronda Rousey is out enjoying married life and a new co-owner position at a supplement company. However, the fans still want to know what the future holds for the former UFC champion. Even if MMA is out of the question, the idea that she may transition to pro wrestling has been teased for a long time. It all started back when she appeared at Wrestlemania at the height of her career to Judo throw Triple H. Now that her friend and Four Horsewomen member Shayna Baszler had entered the fold, it’s been more and more likely that she’ll sign on as well. She’s still mum on the subject, but hinted she doesn’t want to ruin anything. “If you were a real [wrestling] fan, would you really want to know [if I was making my debut]? No, you wouldn’t. My best friends that are out there wrestling, like Shayna [Baszler], I don’t ever even want her to tell me anything that will ever happen [in the WWE] because I enjoy it more that way and I don’t want to ruin anything. We are at a crossroads and we have the luxury of time.” – Ronda Rousey to TMZ.

Tom Taylor - October 11, 2017

Invicta Fighting Championship, an established North American MMA promotion that specializes exclusively in women’s MMA, has announced a new, exclusive talent-sharing partnership with long-standing Japanese promotion Pancrase. This means that, going forward, the two exciting organizations will swap fighters on a regular basis, affording the members of their rosters more opportunities to compete. “It’s an honor to be able to partner with Pancrase, one of MMA’s most storied promotions,” said Invicta FC President Shannon Knapp in an official statement (via Sherdog.com). “In addition to all past and present ‘Kings and Queens of Pancrase,’ pioneers and contemporary stars alike have passed through the Pancrase organization at one time or another.”

Justin Golightly - October 11, 2017

Conor McGregor has now taken the role of Shao Kahn from Mortal Kombat. He just sits back and watches the battles play out until he finally decides one is worthy enough to fight him. Of course, the only name that has seemed close according to rumors, reports and wallets was Nate Diaz. That was, until Tony Ferguson became the interim lightweight champion. Dana White said he and McGregor would be the next fight. Both Ferguson and Diaz are rangy, durable fighters, but Michael Bisping thinks Ferguson is the tougher fight for the Irish ‘champ champ’. “Here’s the thing, [Nate] Diaz is saying he wants $20 million to fight Conor [McGregor] for the third time, which sounds insane. It is insane but realistically, if that was boxing, for an event that size, a fight that big for the PPV numbers, I feel like the boxer would get that money or close to it. […] But $20 million, I think what he’s doing there is pricing himself out of the market, simple as that. That’s why Dana is pushing the [Tony] Ferguson fight. Dana, by going out there at the press conference and saying publicly that Ferguson has to fight Conor, that takes the momentum away from Diaz so that’s gonna soften his stance on the 20 million. Maybe he’s just using that as a negotiation tactic but I think if he doesn’t get what he wants he’ll say, ‘F-ck it, I’m not fighting then,’ and unfortunately, there is another good fight there with Ferguson vs. McGregor.”

Tom Taylor - October 11, 2017

Last weekend, the UFC returned to Las Vegas, Nevada with the action-packed UFC 216. In the card’s main event, we saw Tony Ferguson weather an early storm to capture the UFC interim lightweight title with a third-round submission win over Kevin Lee. In the co-main event of the evening, meanwhile, we saw UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson defend his title for a record-shattering 11th consecutive time, using a suplex to set up a fifth-round armbar for a highlight-reel finish that will never be forgotten.

Tom Taylor - October 11, 2017

UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley’s last two title defenses, a pair of tepid decision wins over Stephen Thompson and Demian Maia, have generated quite a bit of criticism, as many fans feel he could have done more to pursue a finish over his foes. UFC welterweight contender Carlos Condit, who will return from a long hiatus to battle Neil Magny at UFC 219 this December 30, understands these criticisms against Woodley. “I can definitely see where the critics are coming from,” Condit explained on the latest edition of The MMA Hour. “We’re athletes but we’re also entertainers, people buy the pay-per-view to be entertained. That’s part of this. This is show business. I know that winning is super important and a gameplan is super important, but at some point you have to, this is the hurt business and you gotta try to put your opponent out.”

Tom Taylor - October 11, 2017

Now that the action-packed UFC 216 is in the rear-view, the UFC has updated its official rankings. As expected, main event interim lightweight title winner Tony Ferguson has entered the UFC pound-for-pound list, and has also usurped the number-one spot at lightweight. The UFC flyweight rankings also experienced a major shakeup thanks to long-time contender Ian McCall’s exit from the UFC roster. Here’s the UFC rankings as they stand:

Tom Taylor - October 11, 2017

Earlier this week, we learned that UFC heavyweight contender Mark Hunt had been pulled from his UFC Sydney headlining bout with Marcin Tybura, and replaced my Fabricio Werdum. Initially, the reason for Hunt’s withdrawal from this fight wasn’t evident. Eventually, however, it became clear that the UFC had removed him from the bout over “medical concerns” stemming from an article he wrote, during which he talked about slurring his words and his willingness to die fighting. “Following a recent first-person article published by UFC heavyweight Mark Hunt, UFC has taken the precautionary steps of removing Hunt from a previously announced bout in Sydney, Australia,” a statement issued to News.com.au said. “The health-related statements made by Hunt in the article represent the first time UFC was made aware of these claims. Athlete health and safety is of the utmost importance to the organization and it would never knowingly schedule an athlete complaining of health issues for a fight. The organization will require that Hunt undergo further testing and evaluations prior to competing in any future UFC bout.”

Tom Taylor - October 11, 2017

After more than a year and a half on the shelf, bantamweight contender Bryan Caraway is finally slated for a return. Caraway will be taking on “Cool Hand” Luke Sanders when the UFC debuts in Fresno, California with UFC Fight Night 123 this December 9. This report comes from Brett Okamoto of ESPN.com. This bout will be Caraway’s first since he defeated Aljamain Sterling by split decision all the way back in May of 2016. This win was preceded by another impressive decision win over Eddie Wineland, a loss to Raphael Assuncao, and wins over Erik Perez and Johnny Bedford. Caraway is 21-7 overall.

Justin Golightly - October 10, 2017

We’ve had a while week of fight cancellations and curve balls. For UFC 216, Kevin Lee nearly missed weight, Derrick Lewis pulled out of his fight with Fabricio Werdum, Walt Harris was removed from his fight with Mark Godbeer, then finally put in to replace Lewis against Werdum. It was no issue for the Brazilian heavyweight, who dispatched Harris with an armbar in just over a minute. Now, he uses that quick finish to turn around super quick to step in for… Mark Hunt at UFC Sydney? What is happening? Mark Hunt out, @FabricioWerdum steps in to take on @MarcinTybura at #UFCSydney Main Event (November 19th) #UFC #MMA pic.twitter.com/Oki0EqV2IJ

Justin Golightly - October 10, 2017

Saturday’s UFC 216 card turned out to be an embarrassment of riches. Lando Vannata and Bobby Green had a crazy, bloody Fight of the Night. Tony Ferguson became the number one lightweight in the world not named Conor McGregor, in an exciting title fight with Kevin Lee. Who can forget Demetrious Johnson inventing new and amazing ways to tap opponents out by blending a suplex and an armbar? However, the best fight on the card may have gone unnoticed. Thanks to this exclusive clip, UFC shows who the real fight of the night was: Daniel Cormier vs Audio Cords. This cord smashed me. 10-8 round the wrong way for me. Lol https://t.co/itnNB66H1l

Russell Ess - October 10, 2017

There are coaches for all aspects of mixed tiatial arts. You have head coaches that bring everything together and others that help on a specific discipline such as wrestling, striking, or jiu-jitsu. Then, for some athletes, they also hire a mental coach to help them through their mental blocks or issues that can hold back an athlete from their full potential. Georges St-Pierre and Vitor Belfort are examples of some of the biggest stars in mixed martial arts that have worked with a mental coach during their careers. Now, with the sport being highlighted by promotional beasts such as Conor McGregor, could fighters use a promotional coach to hype themselves up and build more fan interest?

Justin Golightly - October 10, 2017

Years before Conor McGregor skirted his flame-shooting Lambo into the UFC to capture double gold and jump around for big fights, there was BJ Penn. When the first UFC lightweight champion Jens Pulver left the organization, the UFC put on a lightweight tournament to crown a new king of the world at 155-pounds. But after BJ Penn and Caol Uno fought to a draw in the finals, the UFC dissolved the entire division. This is what prompted Penn to search out new challenges, resulting in fighting future PRIDE lightweight champion Takanori Gomi in K-1 back in 2003. Oct10.2003

Justin Golightly - October 10, 2017

Okay, we have to talk about what Demetrious Johnson did at UFC 216. By now, even your parents and friends who have never watched the UFC had to have sent you the video on Facebook screaming, ‘Did you see this?!’. Of course you did. Mighty Mouse catapulted Ray Borg up into the air and then slapped on an armbar, submitting him and breaking Anderson Silva’s defense record. I was amazing. We’re still freaking out about it and so is UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway, who geeked out about it to Ariel Helwani and partly to Johnson himself was on the line. “Congrats on the amazing ninja sh-t you did. Congrats [Demetrious Johnson]. You’re a beast, man, I couldn’t believe my eyes what I saw on Saturday night [at UFC 216]. I had to watch it like a thousand times. I think he’s the best, I think he’s the GOAT. He’s going out there and he’s doing phenomenal things. He’s making everyone look like they’re not even in a league of his own. It reminds you of the Ronda Rousey era, everyone’s befuddled about what’s going on and he’s doing it against these other guys who are great. The 125 [division] is brand new, you don’t know who the ex-champs is so you can’t say he fought ex-champs. Bla bla, that’s what everyone is arguing about. This guy is the best in the world to keep competing in the UFC and keep doing what he’s doing.”

Russell Ess - October 10, 2017

Current undisputed UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor is a savvy businessman. While many were expecting “The Notorious” to return to fight in the UFC after making his crossover to the sport of boxing, there is a fresh report coming from The Sun that McGregor is in talks with the WWE for an appearance. According to The Sun, “The Notorious” has been talking with WWE about a “megabucks wrestling match against one of World Wrestling Entertainment’s biggest stars.” The match is reportedly being targeted for a date next year. The April Wrestlemania 34 event taking place at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans is a possibility.

Tom Taylor - October 10, 2017

Last weekend, in the main event of UFC 216, Tony Ferguson and Kevin Lee stepped into the Octagon to battle for the UFC interim lightweight title. Despite a rough first round, Ferguson surged back in the second, and ultimately locked up a choke in the third. In the days leading up to this fight, much was made of Kevin Lee’s massive cut down to the fight’s 156-pound limit. When Lee barely made weight for this title fight, discussions about his massive cut down to lightweight became even more rampant.

Russell Ess - October 10, 2017

Being a fighter and commentator in the UFC can sometimes put you in an odd position as calling the fights might strain the relationship you have with some of your fellow fighters. This seems to be the case with Daniel Cormier, who commentated the UFC 216 broadcast and apparently Tony Ferguson who fought Kevin Lee in the main event did not like what Cormier had to say during the broadcast. Ferguson won the UFC interim lightweight title by submitting Lee with a triangle choke in the third round and then fired some tweets at D.C. while interacting with a bunch of  fellow Twitter users on Monday

Tom Taylor - October 10, 2017

Not long ago, we learned that fan favorite featherweight contender Cub Swanson planned on entering free agency after his UFC Fresno scrap with Brian Ortega, which marks the last obligation on his current UFC contract. Speaking to FloCombat this week, Swanson explained why he’s choosing to fight out his current contract.

Justin Golightly - October 10, 2017

Tony Ferguson did it. He marched through a long hard road out of hell and shined in the moment he needed it most. After submitting Kevin Lee to become the interim UFC lightweight champion, he did what anyone would do: Call out Conor McGregor. After all, he’s the real champion, he’s never defended a belt, and it’s the biggest fight to make at lightweight besides Nate Diaz. McGregor’s coach recently weighed in on the match-up and he doesn’t like Ferguson’s chances after the two wars with another durable, rangy fighter who’s slick on the mat. “[Tony Ferguson]’s good, obviously. He wouldn’t be the interim champion if he wasn’t good. His style is, you know, it’s not traditional, it’s a bit unorthodox and stuff, but I just honestly think that Conor [McGregor]’s going to be way too clean for Ferguson. If Ferguson tries to stand with Conor for an extended period of time it will be lights out, in my opinion. You know, he’s tough as well, he’s tough and durable, so he may take a couple of smacks, but at the end of the day Conor’s going to be way too clean and too technical to… he won’t get touched. That’s my opinion. But yeah, it will be an interesting one and it will be an exciting fight as well because Ferguson does come to fight and he’s aggressive, he goes in, he looks to finish fights, so it will be exciting. But yeah, without a doubt if he wants to stand and bang with Conor it’ll be lights out fairly quick, I think.”