MMA News
Jon Anik: Floyd Mayweather needs McGregor and the UFC more than they need him
Tom Taylor - January 23, 2017
The biggest ongoing storyline in combat sports today surrounds a potential mega fight between retired boxing great Floyd Mayweather and MMA superstar Conor McGregor. Until recently, this history-making showdown has resided firmly in the realm of the hypothetical. When UFC President Dana White made what he called “a real offer” of $25 million to Mayweather, however, that changed. The wheels were decidedly in motion.
VIDEO | Road to the Octagon for UFC Denver: Shevchenko vs. Pena
Tom Taylor - January 23, 2017
https://youtu.be/aBFsGxDobxs With Bellator 170 in the rear-view mirror, the MMA spotlight now shifts to UFC Denver, a stacked card that will air on Fox this Saturday, January 28.
Gilbert Melendez confirms plans to drop to featherweight
Tom Taylor - January 23, 2017
For a time, Gilbert Melendez stood out as one of the best lightweights in the world. That was back when he was the dominant champion of Strikeforce’s lightweight division, and running through names like Josh Thomson, Shinya Aoki, Tatsuya Kawajiri and Jorge Masvidal. Today, however, the lightweight great has hit a bit of a rough patch. After a strong start to his UFC career, which saw him give up a razor thin decision to then lightweight champion Benson Henderson, and defeat Diego Sanchez in one of the best fights ever, Melendez has stumbled onto a three-fight losing streak.
GRAPHIC IMAGE | Brennan Ward sustains nasty cut from Paul Daley knee
Tom Taylor - January 23, 2017
There’s a reason MMA is often referred to as “the hurt business”. Though they are certainly not what we hope for, our hectic sport frequently produces some truly nasty injuries. We’ve seen arms snap like tooth picks. We’ve seen legs break like spaghetti. We’ve seen skulls literally shatter. And of course, we’ve seen a whole hell of a lot of gruesome cuts.
Paul Daley on knocking out friend Brennan Ward: "It was hard, I just hope he’s ok"
Tom Taylor - January 22, 2017
On Saturday night, Bellator MMA returned to our screens with Bellator 170, a stacked card that emanated from Los Angeles, California. Though the card had several exciting moments, the undeniable highlight in terms of spectacle was Paul Daley’s defeat of Brennan Ward. The British knockout artist put his foe down with an incredible flying knee to the temple in the very first round of their fight.
VIDEO | Chael Sonnen discusses Ortiz loss, assures he'll be back
Tom Taylor - January 22, 2017
Last night, in the main event of Bellator 170, three-time UFC title challenger and beloved mouthpiece Chael Sonnen returned from a hiatus of more than three years to take on retiring UFC Hall-of-Famer Tito Ortiz. Unfortunately for Sonnen and his throngs of fans, this comeback fight was a bit of a flop, as he was submitted by his veteran foe just 2:03 into the fight’s first round.
Anderson Silva: under new ownership, UFC is more about entertainment, less about martial arts
Tom Taylor - January 22, 2017
Anderson Silva is the greatest middleweight in the history of our sport. In fact, he could even be the greatest fighter ever, period. As such, his opinion on the state of the UFC and the larger MMA landscape will always be very interesting. In a recent interview with Brazilian TV show Combate News, Silva weighed in on the current state of the UFC, and how things have changed since it was sold by Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta, and purchased by entertainment giant WME-IMG.
Bellator 170 salaries: Ortiz makes bank, Sonnen pockets just $50K
Tom Taylor - January 22, 2017
On Saturday night, Bellator MMA returned to our screens with Bellator 170. This exciting, 18-fight card was headlined by a light heavyweight clash between two veteran, West Coast wrestlers. In one corner, we had California’s Tito Ortiz, a former UFC light heavyweight champion and UFC Hall-of-Famer. In the other, we had Oregon’s Chael Sonnen, a three-time UFC title challenger and a man considered one of the best trash talkers in MMA. Though Sonnen entered this bout as a betting favorite, Ortiz ultimately walked away with the win, locking up a rear-naked choke to earn the tap at just 2:03 of the first round.
MMA community reacts to Tito Ortiz's defeat of Chael Sonnen, retirement from MMA
Tom Taylor - January 22, 2017
On Saturday night, Bellator MMA returned to our screens with Bellator 170. Featuring some of the organization’s biggest names, this action-packed card was topped by a light heavyweight showdown between UFC Hall-of-Famer and veritable MMA legend Tito Ortiz, and returning cult hero Chael Sonnen. In the buildup to this fight, we learned that Tito Ortiz would be retiring afterwards, no matter what happened in the cage. In the end, he was able to earn himself a win, and the perfect way to ride off into the MMA sunset.
VIDEO | Paul Daley scores crushing, flying knee KO at Bellator 170
Tom Taylor - January 22, 2017
https://twitter.com/mma_jim/status/823090493642915840 On one of the increasingly rare weekends without a UFC card, Bellator MMA came to the rescue with a stacked night of fighting in Bellator 170. Emanating from sunny Los Angeles, California, the card featured the swan song of UFC Hall-of-Famer Tito Ortiz, and the anticipated return of legendary trash talker Chael Sonnen. It also featured an extremely violent win courtesy of British knockout artist Paul Daley.
EXCLUSIVE | Phil Baroni weighs in on BJ Penn’s loss to Yair Rodriguez
Chris Taylor - January 22, 2017
Former two division UFC champion BJ Penn returned to the octagon at last weekend’s UFC Fight Night 103 event in Phoenix, Arizona. The UFC Hall of Famer, Penn, squared off with surging featherweight contender Yair Rodriguez in the evening’s main event.
UFC title fights that still need to be booked in 2017
Chris Taylor - January 22, 2017
TJ Dillashaw vs. Cody Garbrandt – Men’s bantamweight title fight Cody Garbrandt is coming off one of the most spectacular performances of the 2016 year at UFC 207 this past month where he scored a convincing decision victory over long time division kingpin Dominick Cruz, thus becoming the UFC’s undisputed bantamweight champion.
EXCLUSIVE | Stephen Thompson “Nick Diaz being offered a title shot is just annoying”
Chris Taylor - January 22, 2017
Top ranked welterweight contender Stephen Thompson will get his second chance at UFC gold on March 4 in Las Vegas when he rematches current division champion Tyron Woodley in the main event of UFC 209. “Wonderboy” and “The Chosen One” first met at this past November’s historic UFC 205 fight card in New York, where after five-rounds of gruelling back and forth action the fight was declared a majority draw by the judges in attendance.
Donald Cerrone wants Robbie Lawler at UFC 209
Chris Taylor - January 22, 2017
UFC welterweight contender Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone will return to the UFC octagon at next weekend’s UFC on FOX event in Denver where he will square off with Jorge Masvidal in the evenings co-main event. Cerrone, who has gone undefeated since moving up from lightweight to the UFC’s welterweight division, was most recently seen in action at December’s UFC 206 event in Toronto, where he scored a highlight reel third-round head kick knockout victory over Matt Brown.
Fights to make for four UFC champions
Chris Taylor - January 22, 2017
Below are fights to make for four current UFC champions. UFC Flyweight Champion: Demetrious Johnson
EXCLUSIVE | Mike Perry “Give me Matt Brown, I will end his career!”
Chris Taylor - January 22, 2017
Welterweight knockout artist Mike Perry burst on to the UFC scene in 2016 scoring electrifying stoppage victories in his first two fights with the promotion. Unfortunately for fans of “Platinum”, the 170-pound slugger suffered his first career setback at December’s UFC on FOX event in Sacramento, dropping a decision loss to surging welterweight contender Alan Jouban on the evenings main card.
VIDEO | 2 vs. 1 MMA fight is the most brutal thing you'll see all day
bjpenndotcom - January 21, 2017
2 on 1 MMA #TeamMMABattle ORDER ON @FloCombat pic.twitter.com/dF5sZzwBEt — Zombie Prophet (@ZPGIFs) January 21, 2017
GIF | Chinzo Machida picks up 3rd round KO win in Bellator
bjpenndotcom - January 21, 2017
Machida Style!!! #Bellator170 Prelims streaming live right here 👉https://t.co/2ow8UELoX3 pic.twitter.com/XJ3H6rmDpw — Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) January 22, 2017