MMA News

Russell Ess - November 3, 2016

It’s becoming much more clear that being an excellent fighter isn’t the only trait you need to be a superstar in mixed martial arts. UFC featherweight Conor McGregor has captured the interest of millions and has broken UFC records with the help of his memorable quotes and actions, building up his fights against his opponents only to back up all his talk, in nearly all of his fights.

bjpenndotcom - November 3, 2016

Several weeks ago, UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping made headlines when he and former UFC welterweight kingpin Georges St-Pierre seemed poised for a fight at UFC 206 in Toronto. Unfortunately, as the story developed, St-Pierre took to social media to reveal that negotiations between he and the UFC didn’t go well, and he would be unable to fight Bisping at UFC 206. Bisping followed up St-Pierre’s statement with one of his own, in which he revealed that he was now set on fighting at UFC 206, and would be willing to fight whoever on the card, so long as he could just get a fight.

bjpenndotcom - November 3, 2016

Donald Cerrone may have spent most of his UFC career as a top ranked lightweight, however Cerrone has recently been on a tear of the UFC’s welterweight division as he has gone 3-0 over the course of 2016. In his welterweight debut, Cerrone submitted Alex ‘Cowboy’ Oliveira before making it 2-0 when he became the first man to TKO Patrick Cote during ‘UFC Fight Night: Ottawa’. Most recently, Cerrone stepped into the Octagon against Rick Story at UFC 202 back in August, delivering a spectacular highlight reel TKO to earn himself the #6 ranking on the UFC’s official rankings.

bjpenndotcom - November 3, 2016

In just under two weeks, on November 12th, UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley will be stepping into the Octagon to fight Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson in the co-main event of UFC 205. The fight will serve as Woodley’s first title defense after he claimed the belt by knocking out Robbie Lawler in the main event of UFC 201, delivering a ‘knockout of the year’ candidate as he slumped Lawler with an overhand right to claim the welterweight championship. While his first title defense is against a very game Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson, who possesses arguably some of the best striking skills in the UFC, Woodley has been preparing for ‘Wonderboy’ by bringing in welterweight prospect Sage Northcutt, who also comes from a Karate background much like Thompson. Leading up to the fight, Woodley has explained that he believes Northcutt’s explosiveness, as well as his strength actually make him a better version of Stephen Thompson.

bjpenndotcom - November 3, 2016

Going into UFC 200 back in July, fan favorite heavyweight Mark Hunt was very open about the fact that he believed there was a possibility his opponent, former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar, could be going into the fight on PEDs. When the UFC announced that Lesnar and Hunt would be fighting at UFC 200 during the UFC 199 broadcast in June, it was also revealed that the UFC had granted Lesnar an exemption from the mandatory transitionary period in which an inactive fighter is tested by USADA for several months prior to becoming an active fighter. With just one month to go until fight night, Lesnar was only subject to one month of testing, rather than the 4 standard 4 months.

bjpenndotcom - November 3, 2016

UFC women’s strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk is currently ranked as the #8 pound for pound fighter in the world on the UFC’s official rankings. With a 12-0 professional record that has seen Jedrzejczyk go 6-0 inside the Octagon, including three defenses of the women’s strawweight championship, Jedrzejczyk’s dominance in the sport can’t be ignored. While Jedrzejczyk reigns as the women’s strawweight champion, she has expressed a desire to move up to flyweight, and become not only the first ever women’s flyweight champion, but also the first female fighter to hold two championship belts. At the present time however, the UFC currently does not have a women’s flyweight division, leaving Jedrzejczyk to continue her reign over the women’s strawweight division.

bjpenndotcom - November 3, 2016

UFC welterweight #1 contender Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson is widely regarded as one of the best strikers in the UFC today. With a 13-1 professional MMA record that has seen ‘Wonderboy’ go 8-1 inside the Octagon, racking up numerous highlight reel knockout wins, in addition to a 20-0 professional kickboxing record that has seen him win two cruiserweight world championships, Thompson is undoubtably a feared striker. Ahead of his UFC 205 scrap with Tyron Woodley in the co-main event, where Thompson hopes to claim the UFC welterweight championship on November 12th, the #1 contender spoke on a recent UFC 205 media call to lay out his gameplan for the fight.

bjpenndotcom - November 3, 2016

Several weeks ago, it appeared as though UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping could very well find himself stepping into the Octagon in December at UFC 206 to fight former UFC welterweight kingpin Georges St-Pierre. While the fight appeared to be all but official, St-Pierre released a message to Bisping via social media in which he informed ‘The Count’ that while he hoped to return to the Octagon at the event, negotiations with the UFC didn’t go well, and he won’t be able to fight at the highly anticipated Toronto event. Bisping, understandably bummed out over the news, released a statement in which he informed fans that he has his heart set on fighting at UFC 206, and would be willing to fight anyone, preferably Nick Diaz.

Tom Taylor - November 2, 2016

I really think this is one of my favourite KOs ever. Amazing stuff from @POSTERBOYJM pic.twitter.com/NGsJKhpbXl — Tom Taylor (@TomTaylorWrites) November 2, 2016

bjpenndotcom - November 2, 2016

Unfortunate news surfaced recently that former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis was targeted, and that several of his and his brother’s cars were set on fire and destroyed in the driveway of their Milwaukee, Wisconsin home. While both brothers took to social media shortly after the incident to give their thoughts on the matter, there has been no word as to who committed the act, or why the Pettis brothers were targeted.

Russell Ess - November 2, 2016

https://www.facebook.com/thekrusher/videos/628865933951602/ We’ve seen Anderson Silva incorporate a small ball into his training for reaction and timing but this video has caught a lot of people’s attention.

Russell Ess - November 2, 2016

We have come a long way in the mixed martial arts game where we don’t see as many discipline versus discipline type matches. However, there are still a few glimpses of them that come up from time to time as the sport is still expanding and people want to have a crack at MMA competition. Here, we take a look at five-time World’s Strongest Man champion Mariusz Pudzianowski take on Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and former UFC heavyweight Rolles Gracie. The two met in the cage in Gdansk, Poland at the KSW 31 event back in May of last year.

Russell Ess - November 2, 2016

Conor McGregor has blown up to be a world-renowned superstar with his abilties both inside and out of the Octagon. Here, we take a trip back in time to the night of February 17, 2007, where the star would shine brightly in his amateur fight against Ciaran Campbell at the ROT – Ring of Truth 6 event at the Ringside Boxing Club in McGregor’s hometown of Dublin, Ireland.

Chris Taylor - November 2, 2016

We now know that UFC 207 will be co-headlined by a men’s bantamweight title fight between reigning champion Dominick Cruz and streaking challenger Cody Garbrandt. Well, as it turns out, this co-main event won’t be the only high profile men’s bantamweight scrap on the December 30 card, as a bout between former champion TJ Dillashaw and stone fisted contender John Lineker was just made official for the event. T.J. Dillashaw vs. John Lineker official for UFC 207! Boom!#UFC207

Chris Taylor - November 2, 2016

UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley will attempt to make his first title defense when he squares off with Stephen Thompson in the co-main event of UFC 205 on November 12 at Madison Square Garden. “The Chosen One” was a recent guest on BJPENN.com’s Rapid Fire segment with host Chris Taylor where he discussed a number of topics, including why he feels Stephen Thompson should be thanking former UFC champion Robbie Lawler. His words:

bjpenndotcom - November 2, 2016

At the UFC 205 press conference several months ago, UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez, and UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor both appeared on stage to field questions from media members, and talk some trash in anticipation of their historic champion vs. champion fight on November 12th. At the conclusion of the press conference, the men came face to face for the first time for their first staredown before the fight. While the moment certainly appeared to be an intense one for fans, with McGregor getting in Alvarez’ face, forcing UFC President Dana White to separate them, Alvarez stated after the event that he had never felt more unthreatened by an opponent than he did when he came face to face with McGregor.

Russell Ess - November 2, 2016

Many fans were disappointed to hear the news on Wednesday that the Luke Rockhold vs. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza UFC Fight Night 101 main event bout was canceled due to Rockhold suffering an injury, which was first reported by Ariel Helwani for MMA Fighting. The two were supposed to meet in a rematch in Melbourne, Australia at Rod Laver Arena on November 26. The two first fought in Strikeforce for Souza’s middleweight title back in 2011 where Rockhold won a unanimous decision where many thought the fight could have gone either way.

bjpenndotcom - November 2, 2016

Combat sports veteran Melvin Manhoef is certainly one of the most credentialed fighters on the planet today. With over 50 professional kickboxing matches that saw him win the ‘It’s Showtime’ championship, in addition to 46 professional MMA fights that have seen him pick up arguably some of the most devastating knockouts in recent memory, ‘No Mercy’ is a man to be feared.