MMA News

bjpenndotcom - December 31, 2016

Friday night in Las Vegas, former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey stepped into the Octagon for the first time since dropping a 2nd round KO loss to Holly Holm at UFC 193 back in November of 2015. While Rousey’s return was the focus of the promo videos from the UFC leading up to the fight, Amanda Nunes dominated the fight from bell to bell, tagging Rousey with a big punch just moments into the fight before then continuing to land a barrage of strikes, ultimately forcing referee Herb Dean to stop the fight just 48 seconds after the opening bell.

bjpenndotcom - December 30, 2016

In the main event of UFC 207, UFC women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes stepped into the Octagon to make her first title defense against former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey in a highly anticipated matchup. For Rousey, the fight served as her highly anticipated return over a year after she was knocked out by Holly Holm at UFC 193. Leading up to the fight there were a lot of questions regarding how Rousey would look in her return fight, and handle the pressure of looking to rebound from the first loss of her career. On the flip side, there were many questions regarding how Nunes would handle fighting a legend like Rousey.

bjpenndotcom - December 30, 2016

In the main event of UFC 207, UFC women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes stepped into the Octagon against former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey in a highly anticipated matchup. Nunes put on a spectacular performance as she finished Rousey in the very first round, just 48 seconds into the bout, leaving the MMA community stunned as she defended her title for the very first time since winning the belt back in July.

Chris Taylor - December 30, 2016

A women’s bantamweight title fight between current champion Amanda Nunes and former title holder Ronda Rousey served as the main event of tonight’s UFC 207 fight card in Las Vegas. The fight did not last even a minute as Nunes battered Rousey with punches on the feet, hurting the former champion on several occasions before the referee mercifully stepped in to stop the bout.

Chris Taylor - December 30, 2016

A women’s bantamweight title fight between current champion Amanda Nunes and former title holder Ronda Rousey served as the main event of tonight’s UFC 207 fight card in Las Vegas. Round one begins and Rousey presses forward. Nunes connects with combo and then a right hand that stuns Rousey. Ronda attempts to clinch but Amanda shakes her off and connects again. More big shots from Nunes. Rousey is in all sorts of trouble. She connects again and the referee steps in to mercifully stop the fight. This one is all over. Wow!

Chris Taylor - December 30, 2016

A bantamweight title fight between current champ Dominick Cruz (22-2 MMA) and surging contender Cody Garbrandt (11-0 MMA) served as the co-main event of tonight’s UFC 207 event in Las Vegas. Round one begins and Garbrandt charges forward with a punch that misses. Cruz connects with a right. Cody replies with a leg kick and then another. Cruz comes forward and lands a left. The fighters trade leg kicks. Cody misses with a combination. He catches Dominick with a left and then another. Cruz fires back with a hard leg kick. Cruz is bouncing around now. Cody chases after him but misses with an attempted right hand. Cruz connects with a low kick. He catches a leg kick from Cody but cannot score a takedown. Garbrandt with a nice leg kick. Cruz goes upstairs with a head kick but it is blocked. Dominick shoots for a takedown and they scramble back to their feet. Cody with a nice right. Dominick replies with a left and then a right hand. Both men land nice leg kicks. Cody ducks a punch and scores a takedown. Cruz scrambles and gets back up to his feet. Dominick with a leg kick and then misses with a spinning back fist to close out round one.

bjpenndotcom - December 30, 2016

Friday night, the UFC hit Las Vegas for a highly anticipated night of fights. In the main event, Ronda Rousey returned to the Octagon after over a year-long hiatus following her UFC 193 KO loss to Holly Holm. On the other hand, UFC women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes stepped into the Octagon looking to make her first successful title defense after winning the belt at UFC 200 by submitting Miesha Tate in the first round. In the co-main event, Dominick Cruz stepped into the Octagon against undefeated Team Alpha Male prospect Cody Garbrandt for a highly anticipated grudge-match that had been built up over the course of many months.

Chris Taylor - December 30, 2016

A key bantamweight tilt between former division title holder TJ Dillashaw and surging contender John Lineker took place on tonight’s UFC 207 main card in Las Vegas. Round one begins and Dillashaw presses forward and misses with a head kick. TJ follows that up with a leg kick but Lineker catches it and scores a trip. TJ bounces right back up and then throws a leg kick. He circles out and then comes forward with another kick that Lineker catches and uses to score a takedown. TK quickly is able to scramble back to his feet and then immediately lands an uppercut and then a leg kick. Another leg kick from Dillashaw lands and he shoots in and scores an easy takedown. TJ moves quickly to half guard and begins working some short shots. Lineker gets back to full guard but TK quickly steps over and back in to half guard. Hammer fists from the former champ. John scrambles and gets back to his feet. TJ fakes a kick and then circles out. Lineker lands a kick but TJ counters with a right hand. Lineker with a punch to the body of Dillashaw but TJ circles out and then lands a kick. Lineker presses forward and lands a hard left. TJ takes it a fires right back with a right. Both men are down to throw leather now. The round comes to an end.

Chris Taylor - December 30, 2016

A welterweight scrap between Dong Hyun Kim and Tarec Saffiedine took place on tonight’s UFC 207 main card in Las Vegas. Round one begins and Kim quickly presses forward and misses with a wild left. The fighters clinch up and Saffiedine attempts to score a trip. It doesn’t work but he goes for it again and the second time is the charm. Kim bounces right back up to his feet but eats a knee from Tarec. Kim presses Saffiedine against the fence and works a knee. The fighters jockey for position and then break. Kim lands a nice right and then a left hand. Tarec retreats and Dong chases after him. Tarec lands a nice right hand and then circles out. Kim presses forward and the welterweights stand and trade. Tarec catches Kim with a right hand but Kim returns fire with a nice short left hook. The fighters briefly clinch and then break. Dong immediately presses forward and once again the clinch up. Kim presses Tarec against the cage and work for a takedown. Tarec defends and lands some nice knees inside. Saffiedine breaks free and lands a low kick. Kim eats it and presses forward. He gets a hold of Tarec and presses him against the cage. They break and Kim misses with a combination. Tarec scores with a pair of knees and then a trip takedown. Kim pops right back up to his feet and round one comes to an end.

Chris Taylor - December 30, 2016

A flyweight scrap between Louis Smolka and Ray Borg kicked off tonight’s UFC 207 main card in Las Vegas. Round one begins and Smolka pumps his jab early. He follows that up with a side kick and then a right hand that misses. Borg presses forward and the fighters tie up in the clinch. The break and Ray misses with a left hand. Smolka attempts a high kick but Borg catches it and utilizes it to score a takedown. He lands in side control. Louis scrambles and gets back up but Borg quickly takes him back down. He moves in to full mount and begins working some shots. Louis rolls and gives up his back. Borg looks to secure a rear-naked choke but Smolka defends. Louis rolls and Ray winds up back in full mount. Louis scrambles but Ray takes is arm. He looks to lock in an omoplata but Louis is able to escape. Louis rolls for a leg lock but Ray catches him with a big shot and then another. Louis lets go of the leg and tries to get up he does but Ray puts him right back down. Good elbow from full guard by Borg. Round one comes to an end.

Chris Taylor - December 30, 2016

A welterweight scrap between former division champion Johny Hendricks and rising contender Neil Magny served as the featured bout of tonight’s UFC 207 prelims in Las Vegas. Round one begins and Magny misses with an early front kick. He follows that up with a side kick that is blocked by Johny. Hendricks charges forward and throws a big overhand left. It misses. He lands a follow up leg kick. Magny circles out and lands a push kick and then a jab. Hendricks charges forward and throws a big combination on Magny. Neil is backed up against the fence but he circles off and lands a pair of nice kicks to the body of Hendricks. Johny returns fire with a hard leg kick. Magny comes forward and lands a pair of jabs to the body. Johny charges forward and misses with a left but then shoots in and scores a takedown. He begins working from full guard. Two and a half minutes remain. Nice short shots from “Big Rigg”. Magny answers with some decent strikes from the bottom. He looks to secure a triangle choke but Johny breaks free. Hendricks with a nice left hand. He catches Johny in a triangle choke attempt. He switches to an arm bar but Johny is defending well. Magny with some strikes from the bottom. Round one comes to an end.

Chris Taylor - December 30, 2016

A middleweight tilt between Antonio Carlos Junior and Marvin Vettori took place during tonight’s UFC 207 prelims on FS1. Round one begins and Vettori charges forward with a combination. Carlos Junior accidently catches him with an eye poke and the referee quickly steps in to let Marvin recover. We restart and Carlos Junior lands a right hand. Vettori comes forward and lands a nice kick to the body. He follows that strike up with a left jab and then another. Antonio replies with a jab to the body. Marvin circles away and then comes forward with another body kick. Again Carlos Junior catches him with an eye poke. After a short break we restart. Marvin charges forward with a combination. This time he catches Antonio with an accidental eye poke and so we break again. Carlos Junior says he is ok and we get back to action. Vettori lands a low kick. Antonio replies with a hard leg kick of his own and then another. He shoots in for a single leg but Vettori defends the shot. Antonio has Marvin presses up against the cage and is working hard for a takedown. Very good defense being shown here by Marvin. He lands a knee to the thigh of his opponent. He switches to some short shots. Antonio replies with a nice right hand from the clinch. Carlos Junior drops down and scores a nice takedown. Marvin is quick to scramble back to his feet. Antonio is looking for a guillotine choke but cannot secure the hold before round one comes to an end.

Chris Taylor - December 30, 2016

A welterweight tilt between Niko Price and Brandon Thatch kicked off tonight’s UFC 207 prelims on FS1. Round one begins and the fighters trade leg kicks to start. Thatch comes forward and lands another hard low kick. Niko quickly replies with one of his own. The fighters clinch and exchange knees inside. They break and Thatch charges forward with a combination. Price returns fire with a low kick and then shoots in for a takedown attempt. Thatch defends and lands a hard knee inside. Niko continues to work for a takedown and gets it. Price begins working from full guard. He lands an elbow and then advances to the half guard position. Thatch quickly scrambles back to full guard. He begins working for a kimura attempt from the bottom. Niko scrambles and breaks free of the kimura hold and winds up in half guard. Niko looks to working towards and arm triangle submission. Thatch explodes but is unable to shake Niko. Price again locks in the arm triangle choke and it is tight. Thatch has no choice but to tapout.

Chris Taylor - December 30, 2016

A welterweight tilt between Alex Oliveira and Tim Means kicked off tonight’s UFC 207 event in Las Vegas. Round one begins and Means immediately attacks the legs of Alex with two hard kicks. Oliveira circles away and then shoots in for a takedown. Means reverses the position and winds up on top. Means with a couple of short strikes but Alex is able to scramble back to his feet. Alex lands a nice combination. He follows that up with a spinning back kick to the body that drops Means. Tim pops back to his feet but Oliveira charges after him. Alex grabs a hold of Means and scores a takedown. He looks to take Tim’s back but Means scrambles and gets back to his feet. The fighters jockey for position against the cage. Means eventually gets the better position and scores a double leg takedown. Good strikes from Means here. He throws a knee to the head of Alex and then another but Oliveira appears to be down. The referee steps in to allow Oliveira to recover from the illegal blows. Oliveira is really hurt bad from those strikes. Unlikely that he doctors will allow him to continue. They don’t and this fight is over. The ruling will be a no-contest.

bjpenndotcom - December 30, 2016

Tonight in the co-main event of UFC 207, UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz and undefeated Team Alpha Male prospect Cody Garbrandt will step into the Octagon for a highly anticipated grudge match for Cruz’ bantamweight title.

Tom Taylor - December 30, 2016

Later tonight, on the main card of UFC 207, former bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw will take on streaking contender John Lineker. The winner of this compelling scrap is likely to be the next man in line for the winner of the card’s co-main event: a bantamweight title showdown between champion Dominick Cruz and challenger Cody Garbrandt. If Garbrandt springs the upset and becomes the division’s new champion, don’t expect him to be especially worried about his first challenge. In advance of his fight with Cruz, he’s referred to both Dillashaw and Lineker as “easy fights.”

Tom Taylor - December 30, 2016

As the hours between us and the stacked UFC 207 continue to melt away, the UFC has released the fifth instalment of its popular Embedded series for the card.

Tom Taylor - December 30, 2016

Former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw is the owner of one of the most unique fighting styles in MMA. As such, he is an extremely difficult opponent to prepare for. Tailoring a game plan for his specialized blend of footwork, head movement, and takedowns is an undeniably stark challenge. Dillashaw’s UFC 207 opponent John Lineker, however, is not particularly panicked about this challenge. In a recent interview with MMAJunkie.com, he shed some light on his very simple strategy for Dillashaw. In his last fight, which saw him narrowly defeat John Dodson, Lineker said he spent too much time chasing his opponent. Against Dillashaw, he plans to avoid doing this, thereby forcing Dillashaw to come to him. From there, he can get to work with his absurd punching power.