MMA News

Justin Golightly - August 15, 2017

Despite his on-again-off-again success in the UFC, Eddie Alvarez is an exceptional fighter. That dude is the only guy to be both a Bellator and UFC lightweight champion. If you go further back, he’s beat the who’s who of anyone in his division from the soil of America to the shores of Japan in smaller promotions. Most of which were former champions in their own right. That’s how he became the king of the underground. If there’s one who knows Conor McGregor, it’s Alvarez. After causing Joey Diaz to have an aneurysm after he beat Rafael dos Anjos for the lightweight belt, Alvarez lost it directly to McGregor in a flurry of super Sayain punches. You’d think that would make Eddie salty, but he thinks you’re a fool is you don’t think Conor McGregor can beat Floyd Mayweather.

Tom Taylor - August 15, 2017

Back in February, former Strikeforce lightweight champion and current Bellator lightweight contender Josh Thomson was knocked out in a fight with Patricky “Pitbull” Freire. Regrettably, the catalyst for the knockout seemed to be an inadvertent but illegal clash of heads. Given this controversial end, Thomson moved to appeal the loss, hoping the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) would rule the fight a no-contest. Unfortunately, the CSAC opted not to change the official result – despite the fact that Thomson was not even present at the ruling to argue his case.

Justin Golightly - August 15, 2017

It’s no secret what the public thinks of Conor McGregor and Floyd Mayweather’s boxing match. They’ll tell you every minute of every day on a myriad of social platforms. Some are fervently arguing McGregor’s power is just too mutant, others clap back with the fact that the best boxers on our planet couldn’t beat Mayweather, so how will McGregor do it? As with any war or conflict, some people just choose to remain conscientious observers. Surprisingly, the same goes for UFC fighters. The folks at MMA Crazy TV put together a collection of fighter prediction and some of them said some very interesting things. Most of them agree though, that it’s hard to imagine a scenario where Conor McGregor beats Mayweather. “Floyd’s not just a better boxer, but a smarter fighter, and he’s a championship level fighter. He’s obviously the better boxer, we look at it and we can see he’s the better boxer. But sometimes, being better isn’t enough, because Conor will hit him with some unpredictable stuff. Floyd’s never fought a switch stance fighter before, I think Conor sees that. Floyd’s never fought someone who can handle the clinch like that. Floyd’s fought power hitters before, but he’s never fought somebody with that type of movement, even that type of stance. If it was against any other boxer, I think Conor would stand a really great chance of winning.” — Kevin Lee on Mayweather vs. McGregor.

Tom Taylor - August 15, 2017

During the broadcast of the UFC’s recent trip to Mexico City, former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis called for a fight with fellow lightweight contender Dustin Poirier. Shortly thereafter, Poirier confirmed his interest in this fight on Twitter. Poirier later reaffirmed his interest in this fight in an interview with BJPenn.com’s own Chris Taylor. “You know I was hoping for a top-five opponent,” he told Taylor. “But if I can’t get that, then Anthony Pettis is a former champion in both WEC and UFC. The guy is a big name in the sport, so that would be a good fight as well.”

Tom Taylor - August 15, 2017

UFC 217, which goes down on November 4 inside New York City’s hallowed Madison Square Garden, has grown by two big fights. The first of these fights will occur at heavyweight, where top-15 fighters Curtis Blaydes and Alexey Oleynik will collide. The second will go down at light heavyweight, where top-15 contenders Patrick Cummins and Corey Anderson will do battle. This Blaydes-Oleynik fight was first reported by Shawn Bitter on Twitter, though it has not yet been made official by the UFC. UFC 217’s Cummins-Anderson fight was first reported by Farah Hannoun. It has also not been confirmed.

Tom Taylor - August 15, 2017

Originally, TJ Dillashaw was expected to battled Cody Garbrandt for the UFC bantamweight title at UFC 213. Unfortunately, Garbrandt was forced out of this anticipated grudge match with a back injury, which left Dillashaw without an opponent. Having been deprived of this title fight with Garbrandt, Dillashaw then set his sights on a drop to flyweight, where he hoped to challenge dominant champion Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson. Unfortunately, Johnson wasn’t on board with this plan, and Dillashaw had to shift his focus back to a fight with Garbrandt.

Tom Taylor - August 15, 2017

Former two-division boxing champ Paulie Malignaggi joined Conor McGregor‘s training camp with the intention of helping the Irish MMA star prepare for his boxing match with Floyd Mayweather Jr. Unfortunately, he left the camp after just a few sparring sessions, feeling that he’d been unfairly represented by the Irishman and his team. Not long thereafter, UFC President Dana White released footage that appeared to show McGregor dropping Malignaggi, confirming what McGregor and his camp had claimed, and poking holes in Malignaggi’s telling of the story.

Tom Taylor - August 15, 2017

Back in 2010, former two-division UFC champion Randy Couture was charged with welcoming boxing star James Toney to mixed martial arts. As many expected, the 47-year-old Couture made quick work of his foe, dragging him into unfamiliar territory on the mat, where he locked up an arm-triangle choke for the win. On August 26, we’ll witness a similar spectacle, as UFC megastar Conor McGregor steps into the boxing ring to battle Floyd Mayweather Jr. Speaking on The Herd with Colin Cowherd, Couture weighed in on this style-clash. Though he once successfully represented MMA against boxing in the Octagon, he gives McGregor very little chance of doing the same in the boxing ring.

Chris Taylor - August 14, 2017

Back in November of 2015, Tae Hyun Bang stepped onto the canvas with Leo Kuntz. He did so on the undercard of a UFC Fight Night in Seoul, in his native South Korea. In the end, Bang and Kuntz’s fight went down as a fairly forgettable one, with Bang earning a close, split decision win. The final hours before this fight, however, stand out in the memory as some seriously suspect ones.

Chris Taylor - August 14, 2017

Yesterday, we reported some unfortunate news that beloved pro-wrestling legend Ric “The Nature Boy” Flair had been hospitalized over the weekend. Thankfully wrestling fans were able to let out a big “Wooooo” of relief when Legacy Talent CEO Melinda Morris Zanoni revealed that the 68-year-old wrestling legend was doing alright.

Chris Taylor - August 14, 2017

Former two-weight boxing champion Paul Malignaggi was recently involved in two hard sparring sessions with current UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor, this to help prepare the Irish star for his upcoming showdown with Floyd Mayweather. This much we know.

Russell Ess - August 14, 2017

UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley has gone on the record to state that he feels that former champion Georges St-Pierre does not want to fight him in the Octagon. Woodley believes that St-Pierre does not want to risk getting a concussion against him and would rather take on opponents less likely to do such a thing to him in competition. Speaking on The MMA Hour on Monday, St-Pierre commented on what the current UFC welterweight champion has been saying and also gave him praise for his last performance.

Russell Ess - August 14, 2017

Former UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre has signed his contract to fight UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping at UFC 217 on November 4 in New York. By the time of UFC 217, it will be just shy of four years since St-Pierre last fought in the UFC as his last competition was on November 16, 2013, where he successfully defended his title against Johny Hendricks winning a close split decision.

Tom Taylor - August 14, 2017

The next crack at Michael Bisping’s UFC middleweight title will not go to interim champion Robert Whittaker. It will not go to top contender Yoel Romero, or former champion Luke Rockhold. It will not go to Chris Weidman or Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza. Instead, it will go to Georges St-Pierre, a welterweight great who has not fought since 2013 and has never competed at middleweight. Needless to say, news of St-Pierre’s title shot was no exactly well-received. Luckily, St-Pierre revealed on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour that, if he beats Bisping, he is contractually obligated to defend the middleweight title, rather than chase a money fight in another division. This means that order should return to the middleweight division soon after this Bisping vs. St-Pierre fight.

Tom Taylor - August 14, 2017

Having relinquished the UFC light heavyweight title to his arch rival Jon Jones, former champion Daniel Cormier now finds himself at a crossroads. Really, if he doesn’t retire, he would seem to have two options. The first is to keep slogging away at light heavyweight in hopes of earning a third fight with Jones. The second would be to return to heavyweight, where his career began, and attempt to compete with apex predators like Stipe Miocic, Alistair Overeem, Fabricio Werdum and Cain Velasquez. Speaking on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour, Cormier discussed a possible move back to heavyweight. Apparently, the move back up would not be an easy one, but it’s one he’d certainly consider.

Russell Ess - August 14, 2017

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier has not been heard from much since losing the belt to Jon Jones at UFC 214. Cormier was controversially interviewed in the Octagon by Joe Rogan and released a short statement on social media after the loss. However, on Monday, Cormier joined Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour and gave his first interview since UFC 214 and opened up on how he was feeling.

Tom Taylor - August 14, 2017

Bryan Caraway hasn’t stepped into the cage since May of 2016. From the sounds of it, he’s eager to change that very soon. On Monday morning, the long-time bantamweight contender, who currently holds the number-6 spot in the official UFC bantamweight rankings, made a call out of brick-fisted Brazilian John Lineker.

Tom Taylor - August 14, 2017

Over the weekend, Lowking.pl reported that the UFC’s November 19 return to Sydney, Australia, would be headlined by a heavyweight showdown between Mark Hunt and Marcin Tybura. This report was later confirmed by MMAJunkie.com, and now, it’s been officially announced by the UFC. #UFCSydney: @markhunt1974 vs @MarcinTybura Sunday, Nov 19 | @qudosbankarena 🎫 👉 https://t.co/T3qpToug8G pic.twitter.com/iaTU5w4x2A