MMA News

Tom Taylor - August 3, 2017

Back in January, in the main event of Bellator 170, former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz retired with an abrupt submission win over three-time UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen. Though you might expect this outcome to mark the end on the pair’s beef, it didn’t. Several months later, during Sonnen’s Bellator NYC battle with rival Wanderlei Silva, Ortiz could be seen chirping him from cage-side. Now several months removed from this battle with Silva, which he won by unanimous decision, Sonnen discussed Ortiz’s mid-fight actions with Duane Finley of FloCombat.com.

Tom Taylor - August 3, 2017

It has now been more than a year since Cain Velasquez’s last fight, a July 2016 mauling of the ever-dangerous Travis Browne. This, of course, is not for lack of trying. The former heavyweight champ was briefly scheduled for a December rematch with Fabricio Werdum, but unfortunately withdrew from this fight with the latest in the long string of injuries that has marred his recent career. For a time, it sounded as though it could be awhile before the oft-injured Velasquez stepped back into the cage. Apparently, however, he might be back in action quite soon.

Tom Taylor - August 3, 2017

Last weekend, in the co-main event of the blockbuster UFC 214, UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley defended his title with a decision defeat of grappling whiz Demian Maia. Unfortunately, this win was not especially thrilling, and it generated some backlash from the MMA community – including UFC President Dana White. Having heard White’s criticisms, Woodley went off on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour, threatening to leak sensitive information about the UFC and its president if he didn’t receive a public apology. Luckily, things seem to have cooled off, as Woodley and White have managed to squash their beef.

Jason Kindschy - August 2, 2017

BJPENN.COM Radio returns tonight at 8PM ET/5PM PT with more awesome guests for your MMA fix! 8:15PM ET- First up, arguably the biggest winner from UFC 214 over the weekend, Volkan “No Time” Oezdemir. After dispatching the very dangerous Jimi Manuwa in less than a minute, Volkan is calling for a crack at the Jon Jones or a title eliminator against Alexander Gustafson. We’ll recap the huge win, get his take on the triumphant return of Jon Jones, and discuss what his next move will be as he continues blazing a trail towards the light-heavyweight crown.

Russell Ess - August 2, 2017

Nate Diaz, Artemij Sitenkov, and Joseph Duffy all have one thing in common: A win over UFC superstar Conor McGregor. Duffy beat McGregor back in 2010 when the two fought in Cage Warriors where Duffy was able to submit “The Notorious” in just 38 seconds by arm triangle choke. Duffy recently renewed a contract with the UFC but also had a stint in professional boxing where he went 7-0 as a pro in 2013. So, with his experience fighting McGregor and in professional boxing, it’s interesting to hear his take on the whole Floyd Mayweather vs Conor McGregor madness that is set to take place on August 26.

Russell Ess - August 2, 2017

Floyd Mayweather made headlines on Tuesday when he posted a challenge to Conor McGregor on social media offering to fight with 8-ounce gloves instead of the 10-ounce gloves that are in their contracted rules. “Don’t believe what you hear in the media. Don’t believe what you hear on blog sites. If it’s not coming directly from me, then it’s not true,” Mayweather said in his post. “I’m telling McGregor, “Let’s fight in 8 oz gloves”. McGregor can fight in any brand he prefers or chooses. I’ll be wearing 8 oz Grant gloves. Whatever advantage McGregor needs to feel more comfortable in the ring, I’m willing to accommodate. Let’s give the boxing and MMA fans what they want to see.”

Russell Ess - August 2, 2017

There has been a lot of buzz on the sparring that took place between UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor and former world champion boxer Paulie Malignaggi, even though it has only been one sparring session. The two got into the ring as part of McGregor’s camp for his August 26 mega-million dollar boxing match against undefeated great Floyd Mayweather.

Tom Taylor - August 2, 2017

Last Saturday, in the co-main event of UFC 214, Tyron Woodley made a third defense of the UFC welterweight title with a decision defeat of Demian Maia. Unfortunately, Woodley suffered a torn labrum in the bout, which is likely to keep him on the sidelines for at least five months. Though Woodley is likely to be out of action for the latter half of 2017, he has already begun considering the possibilities for his next title defense. Speaking to BJPenn.com’s Chris Taylor, the champ explained that there is not exactly a clear welterweight contender out there at the moment. He also ran through some potential welterweight matchups that might produce a clear-cut contender.

Chris Taylor - August 2, 2017

Tyron Woodley (18-3-1 MMA) successfully defended his title this past weekend in Anaheim, scoring a unanimous decision victory over top contender Demian Maia in the co-main event of UFC 214. “The Chosen One” was able to stuff all 21 of Demian Maia’s takedown attempts and left the Brazilian submission specialist with two badly swollen eyes.

Tom Taylor - August 2, 2017

Former UFC women’s bantamweight champion and transcendent MMA superstar Ronda Rousey has not been seen in action since she was bludgeoned to a first-round TKO loss by reigning champ Amanda Nunes in December. This layoff was preceded by an even longer one, as the former champ spent more than a year on the shelf after her next most recent fight, a shocking, head-kick knockout loss to Holly Holm. While we have seen Rousey return from long layoffs before, it seems unlikely that she’ll return from this latest hiatus. Speaking to ESPN on Monday, UFC President Dana White assured that Rousey is probably done fighting.

Tom Taylor - August 2, 2017

Though he is no longer the UFC superstar he once was, Chael Sonnen has carved out some real success under the Bellator MMA banner. His first fight, of course, was a disappointing loss to the retiring legend Tito Ortiz. In his next fight, however, he rebounded with a dominant decision win over long-time rival and bona fide MMA legend Wanderlei Silva. From the sounds of it, Sonnen’s habit of battling aging legends is likely to continue. In a recent interview with FloCombat.com, the three-time UFC title challenger suggested that his next fight is likely to pit him against former UFC light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell.

Tom Taylor - August 2, 2017

On August 26, UFC lightweight champ Conor McGregor will step into the boxing ring with undefeated boxing great Floyd Mayweather Jr. Originally, the pair were expected to battle in 10 oz. gloves, though a recent offer from Mayweather indicated that that could change. Mayweather made his offer on social media, assuring that he was ok with wearing smaller, 8 oz. gloves, which would be much closer to the 4 oz. gloves to which McGregor has grown accustomed as an MMA fighter.

Tom Taylor - August 2, 2017

Last Saturday night, in the co-main event of UFC 214, Tyron Woodley defended his title for a third time, defeating dangerous grappler Demian Maia with an admittedly tepid unanimous decision. Earlier on the UFC 214 main card, former champion Robbie Lawler rebounded from a 2016 knockout loss to Woodley with an action-packed decision defeat of the ever-dangerous Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone. With this win, Lawler re-established himself as one of the welterweight division’s top contenders, and perhaps, the next man in line for a shot at Woodley’s well-guarded throne. Woodley himself, however, is not so keen on the idea of a Lawler title shot. He stomped on the former champ’s case on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour (h/t MMAFighting.com).

Tom Taylor - August 2, 2017

Head kick knockouts seem to be en vogue at the moment. Just days removed from Jon Jones’ thunderous UFC 214 head kick of Daniel Cormier (which was followed up with a strafing of ground-and-pound), Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series produced yet another violent head kick finish. This highlight-reel finish was authored by Julian Marquez. His victim was two-time World Series of Fighting veteran and Jackson’s MMA product Phil Hawes. See Marquez’ jaw-rattling KO below:

Tom Taylor - August 2, 2017

Last Saturday, Daniel Cormier lost the UFC light heavyweight title to his fiercest rival Jon Jones, succumbing to a third-round head-kick and followup punches. Shortly after this emotional loss, during his ill-advised Octagon interview with Joe Rogan, Cormier broke down in tears. In the opinion of UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping, Cormier should have done his best to hold back his tears until he got backstage. Crying out in the open, Bisping suggested, gave Jones just the revenge he was looking for. “Cormier shouldn’t have done that,” Bisping said on his podcast Believe You Me (h/t Jed Meshew of MMAFighting.com) . “I thought it was bad because – listen, I’ve never cried when I’ve lost a fight, that’s not what I’m saying though. What I’m saying is because how much they dislike one another, and for as classy as Jon Jones could be inside the octagon, don’t tell me that that wasn’t the ultimate f**king revenge for Jon Jones to see D.C. crying. So what I mean is that the way he should have handled that better is to save that for the private moments.

Tom Taylor - August 1, 2017

Over the weekend, Tyron Woodley defended his UFC welterweight title for a third time with a decision triumph over Demian Maia. Regrettably, the slow nature of Woodley’s win generated quite a bit of backlash, the most notable of which came from UFC President Dana White. On Monday’s edition of the MMA Hour, the welterweight champ defended his performance against Maia, and even threatened to leak sensitive information about the UFC boss.

bjpenndotcom - August 1, 2017

The ongoing saga of a potential Georges St-Pierre vs. Michael Bisping superfight has continued to result in a delay. Despite Robert Whittaker recently winning the interim middleweight championship, a Bisping vs. St-Pierre fight has once again picked up steam. Prior to the Robert Whittaker vs. Yoel Romero interim middleweight title fight, Georges St-Pierre texted both Michael Bisping and Dana White requesting a fight with Bisping in November. Following the fight, Bisping was guaranteed the winner, however a potentially lengthy sit has forced interim champion Robert Whittaker to the wayside for the next several months, bringing back the possibility of a Bisping vs. GSP fight once again.

Russell Ess - August 1, 2017

Jon Jones was able to get back the UFC light heavyweight championship title from Daniel Cormier on Saturday night, serving “DC” the first KO loss of his MMA career. Jones is the only man who has been able to fight Cormier in a professional mixed martial arts bout and come out the winner. Cormier went into the UFC 214 fight against Jones as the defending champion and earned the highest reported salary from the event with a guaranteed purse of $1 million. Jones’ reported salary from UFC 214 was $500,000. However, Malki Kawa who manages Jon Jones claims that the reported incomes don’t tell the full stories as far as earnings go.