MMA News

Tom Taylor - May 10, 2017

Though it initially looked like a near impossibility, we’ve recently been given some real reason to believe that a boxing match between UFC lightweight champ Conor McGregor and undefeated great Floyd Mayweather could actually happen. One of the most compelling of these reasons has been UFC President Dana White’s interest in making the fight happen.

bjpenndotcom - May 9, 2017

Since their partnership with USADA, numerous UFC fighters have been popped by USADA for failing drug tests, both in and out of competition. With that being said, this has resulted in numerous fighters being suspended for failed drug tests. With the UFC’s USADA partnership, fighters are required to inform USADA as to their whereabouts at all times so they are available for random drug testing.

Tom Taylor - May 9, 2017

When Kelvin Gastelum tested positive for marijuana metabolites and was pulled from UFC 212, his planned foe, Anderson Silva was left without an opponent. For a time, there seemed to be a real effort in place to find a replacement opponent for Silva. During this stretch, he was called out by fellow middleweight stars like Yoel Romero, Luke Rockhold, and Uriah Hall. In the end, however, none of these fights materialized, and an opponent-less Silva was removed from the UFC 212 bill altogether. Since then, Silva has been the subject of several new callouts.

Russell Ess - May 9, 2017

Former UFC middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva is very upset that he will not be fighting at UFC 212, which takes place in his home country of Brazil. “The Spider” was slated to take on Kelvin Gastelum in Rio de Janeiro on June 3. However, Gastelum was pulled from the fight as he was recently suspended after testing positive for marijuana. Gastelum’s positive test stemmed from an in-competition drug test from his fight against Vitor Belfort at UFC Fight Night 106.

Tom Taylor - May 9, 2017

Yesterday, the UFC released the official poster for UFC 212, which will be headlined by a featherweight title unification bout between undisputed champ Jose Aldo, and interim champ Max Holloway. This poster, which is half upside-down, half right-side-up, is a bit of a weird one. In the past, we’ve seen other fighters complain about their size, position, and placement on official UFC fight posters. UFC light heavyweight champ Daniel Cormier, for example, did so when he first saw the official poster for UFC 210, which showed him, superimposed in front of a massive Anthony “Rumble” Johnson. Given this, some fans expected a negative reaction from Holloway – the upside-down party on this strange UFC 212 poster.

Tom Taylor - May 9, 2017

On July 22, the UFC will make its anticipated debut in Long Island with UFC on Fox 25. Over the last few weeks, the card has begun to come together, and today, it’s being reported that the lineup has grown by one crucial bantamweight fight. This fight will pit New Jersey’s Jimmie Rivera against Brazilian destroyer Thomas Almeida. This report comes from NewsDay.com.

bjpenndotcom - May 9, 2017

The Ultimate Fighter winner Kelvin Gastelum recently found himself making headlines for the wrong reasons when it was announced in early April that he had been pulled from his scheduled UFC 212 showdown with Anderson Silva for a failed fight night drug test following his win over Vitor Belfort. Gastelum failed the fight night drug test for marijuana, and was subsequently pulled from the bout before being handed a 90 day suspension from the Brazilian sport court. The commission released a statement through MMAFighting, in which it was revealed that Gastelum allegedly changed his story regarding the failed drug test, saying:

Tom Taylor - May 9, 2017

Eddie Alvarez and Conor McGregor exchanged plenty of trash talk in the buildup to their November 2016 lightweight title fight. Based on this trash talk alone, there would be plenty of reason to assume that the two fighters don’t like each other.

bjpenndotcom - May 9, 2017

Former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva, and former heavyweight boxing champion Evander Holyfield are both two of the most dominant fighters in their respective sports. In a newly released video, both Silva and Holyfield can be seen breaking down some of their favorite combinations.

Tom Taylor - May 9, 2017

When Artem Lobov stepped onto the canvas with Cub Swanson in April, he did not produce a win. He did, however earn the respect of the fans and his fellow fighters – many of whom suggested he didn’t deserve a fight with Swanson to begin with – by battling the elite featherweight for five, fun rounds. In the wake of his action-packed loss to Swanson, Lobov has received a handful of callouts from other fighters. One such fighter was UFC veteran Robert Whiteford, who is apparently in talks for an Octagon return when the UFC touches down in Glasgow later this year.

bjpenndotcom - May 9, 2017

UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier may have just picked up a major win over Anthony Johnson to successfully defend his light heavyweight title for the second time, however Cormier’s popularity has been surprisingly low despite the recent dominant win. He spoke to MMAJunkie Radio to discuss his popularity, saying:

Tom Taylor - May 9, 2017

When it was first announced that the unranked Artem Lobov would be fighting the UFC’s fourth-ranked featherweight in Cub Swanson, there was widespread backlash. Many fans suggested this was an opportunity the Russian-born Irishman didn’t deserve, and one that was only being afforded to him because of his friendship MMA megastar Conor McGregor. In the end, however, Lobov silenced many of his doubters. Though he did not defeat Swanson, he battled the elite featherweight for five, wild rounds, and even won the first in the eyes of many spectators. With this gutsy performance, Lobov earned the respect of the MMA community, validated his spot on the UFC roster, and set himself up for more big opportunities as a UFC featherweight.

Tom Taylor - May 9, 2017

Back in November of 2016, Eddie Alvarez stepped onto the canvas to defend the UFC lightweight title against Irish superstar Conor McGregor. Regrettably for Alvarez and his many fans, this fight would go down as a bit of a disaster, as he was soundly out struck and ultimately knocked out by his Irish foe. Speaking on a recent episode of The Luke Thomas Show, Alvarez explained that it was incredibly difficult for him to bounce back from this nightmarish loss.

Chris Taylor - May 8, 2017

Last week former UFC welterweight kingpin Georges St-Pierre took to Twitter where he announced that he would be ready to fight Michael Bisping for the UFC middleweight championship any time after October. The news was not well received by most fellow fighters on the UFC’s middleweight roster, or fans and media for that matter, as the planned “super-fight” was initially slated to occur at this summer’s UFC 213 event on July 8 in Las Vegas.

Russell Ess - May 8, 2017

Nate Diaz is one of the brightest stars in the UFC, especially after his pair of fights against current UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor. The product of Stockton, California along with older brother Nick are known for their attitudes of keeping things real, paired with their elite fighting abilities. However, even with their loyal fan bases, Nate says that his stock could be much higher if the UFC jumped on board and pushed he and his brother like they have done with other fighters.

Tom Taylor - May 8, 2017

Back in September of 2011, former UFC welterweight champ and bona fide MMA legend Matt Hughes was knocked out by Josh Koscheck. Given that this marked Hughes’ second straight knockout loss – the other was dealt by our own BJ Penn – he retired shortly thereafter. Apparently, however, retirement was never what Hughes wanted, and he’d like to return so that he’s able to retire on a win. He explained this feeling on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour:

Tom Taylor - May 8, 2017

It has been known for some time that UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping will next defend his title against former welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre. With St-Pierre now saying he won’t be able to take this lucrative title fight until October or later, however, the many contenders in the stacked middleweight division are getting quite frustrated – perhaps none more so than former champ Luke Rockhold. Rockhold vented on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour:

Russell Ess - May 8, 2017

It looks like former middleweight champion Anderson Silva will not be fighting in his home country of Brazil at UFC 212, which takes place on June 3. Silva was scheduled to fight Kelvin Gastelum on the Rio de Janeiro fight card. However, Gastelum tested positive for marijuana after his fight with Vitor Belfort and his first round TKO win was overturned to a no contest. With the positive test, Gastelum was pulled from the fight with Silva as he was suspended for 90 days.