MMA News
Daniel Cormier believes the PFL's recent event is proof the UFC has no competition: "It's never been more clear to me"
Josh Evanoff - October 25, 2024
UFC commentator Daniel Cormier believes the PFL’s recent event shows a lack of competition. Last Saturday night in Saudi Arabia, the Donn Davis-led company held their biggest show to date. In the main event, former UFC champion Francis Ngannou competed for the first time since 2022 to face Renan Ferreira. Meanwhile, the co-main event featured the legendary Cris Cyborg facing PFL tournament winner Larissa Pacheco.
Dana White shuts down Ilia Topuria's talk of challenging Islam Makhachev at lightweight: "This is his first title defense"
Josh Evanoff - October 25, 2024
UFC President Dana White doesn’t want to see Ilia Topuria vs. Islam Makhachev just yet. ‘El Matador’ is set to return to the octagon in the main event of UFC 308 this Saturday night. Back for the first time since winning featherweight gold against Alexander Volkanovski in February, Ilia Topuria will face Max Holloway. ‘Blessed’ earned the title opportunity with a knockout win over Justin Gaethje in April.
Umar Nurmagomedov says reported Song Yadong fight is canceled, reacts to Merab Dvalishvili's "Scared" comments
Curtis Calhoun - October 25, 2024
UFC bantamweight contender Umar Nurmagomedov didn’t take long to respond to Merab Dvalishvili’s recent outburst at a fan Q+A event. Nurmagomedov is the presumptive No. 1 bantamweight contender after defeating Cory Sandhagen at UFC Abu Dhabi earlier this year. The undefeated Dagestani seemed destined to face Dvalishvili following the latter’s title win over Sean O’Malley at UFC 306.
Francis Ngannou issues cold response to "Bully" Dana White's latest attacks
Curtis Calhoun - October 25, 2024
Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou responded to UFC CEO Dana White’s latest claims and accusations regarding the rocky end to his promotional tenure. Ngannou’s long-awaited return to the cage went according to plan, as he finished 2023 PFL title winner Renan Ferreira earlier this month. He was making his PFL debut after almost three full years away from the cage.
WATCH | Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev have intense final faceoff before UFC 308 fight
Cole Shelton - October 25, 2024
Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev had an intense final faceoff ahead of their highly-anticipated UFC 308 fight. Whittaker and Chimaev are set to fight in a five-round co-main event in a crucial scrap for the middleweight division. The winner of the bout could get the next title shot and this fight is a long time coming.
PFL Chairman Donn Davis clarifies comments on UFC star Kayla Harrison
Fernando Quiles Jr. - October 25, 2024
PFL Chairman Donn Davis has clarified his past comments on Kayla Harrison. Davis came under fire within the MMA community when he compared Harrison to NBA star Kevin Durant. Davis said that Harrison left PFL for the UFC because she’s a follower who needs validation.
Merab Dvalishvili says Umar Nurmagomedov is taking another fight due to being 'scared' of him
Fernando Quiles Jr. - October 25, 2024
Merab Dvalishvili believes Umar Nurmagomedov is running scared. While many believe Nurmagomedov is deserving of a number one contender fight, rumors have swirled that his next bout will not be for a title. Instead, the word going around is that Nurmagomedov will fight Song Yadong.
Khamzat Chimaev makes weight for UFC 308 with just minutes remaining
Harry Kettle - October 25, 2024
UFC star Khamzat Chimaev just about managed to make weight earlier today for his clash with Robert Whittaker. As we know, Khamzat Chimaev is a pretty unpredictable guy. In the cage, he’s an undefeated monster. Outside of it, however, it’s often hard to predict what he’s going to do next. From missing weight to long periods of time on the shelf, it’s a far cry from the man who first burst onto the scene during the pandemic with two wins in less than two weeks.
Francis Ngannou admits he wasn't sure if he'd ever fight again after losing his son
Harry Kettle - October 25, 2024
PFL heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou has admitted that he wasn’t sure he’d ever fight again after the death of his son. Last weekend, Francis Ngannou made his blockbuster return to mixed martial arts. Following his stint in professional boxing, ‘The Predator’ opted to head back into the cage with PFL. In doing so, he signed up to fight Renan Ferreira – a man who many believed was capable of defeating Francis.
Dana White reveals conversation with Mark Zuckerberg over UFC rankings
Harry Kettle - October 25, 2024
UFC president Dana White has revealed that he’s had conversations with Mark Zuckerberg over changing the promotion’s rankings system. As we know, Dana White is the man in charge at the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He’s been the face of the company fheor a long time now and beyond that, he’s also managed to take the promotion to unbelievable new heights. Of course, that doesn’t mean things are perfect – as there are still a few tidbits that he’d like to change.
Rodtang believes Jacob Smith is “still the same” ahead of ONE 169
BJPENN.COM Staff - October 25, 2024
ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon has been quietly weighing up #3-ranked contender Jacob Smith ahead of next month’s rematch, and he feels his old foe is still singing the same tunes. “The Iron Man” defends his gold against Smith at ONE 169: Malykhin vs. Reug Reug on Friday, November 8, inside Bangkok, Thailand’s Lumpinee Stadium.
UFC 308 | Pro fighters make their picks for Robert Whittaker vs Khamzat Chimaev
Cole Shelton - October 24, 2024
In the co-main event of UFC 308, a pivotal middleweight bout goes down as Robert Whittaker takes on Khamzat Chimaev. Heading into the bout, Whittaker is a +200 underdog while the undefeated fighter is a -265 favorite on FanDuel. Ahead of the scrap, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the pivotal middleweight fight. The pros believe Whittaker will be able to pull off the upset as they think he can drag the fight into the later rounds and get the win.
Dana White reveals he'll "absolutely" approve Islam Makhachev welterweight title shot with win over Arman Tsarukyan
Josh Evanoff - October 24, 2024
UFC President Dana White has co-signed on Islam Makhachev’s future welterweight move. The Russian has been out of the cage since a June title defense against Dustin Poirier. In the main event of UFC 302, Islam Makhachev faced ‘The Diamond’ in the latter’s third crack at undisputed gold. Despite some resistance from the challenger, the lightweight champion wound up securing a fifth-round submission victory.
REPORT | UFC champion Alex Pereira is in talks to join 'Onslaught' film in production at A24
Josh Evanoff - October 24, 2024
UFC light-heavyweight champion Alex Pereira could soon be entering showbusiness. ‘Poatan’ has been out of the cage since his clash against Khalil Rountree Jr. earlier this month at UFC 307. Back for the first time since dominating Jiri Prochazka in June, the Brazilian went down on the scorecards early. ‘The War Horse’ scored a shocking second-round knockdown, and brought the fight to Alex Pereira.
VIDEO | Dana White shockingly signs 9-0 fighter who asked for a contract at UFC 308 press conference
Josh Evanoff - October 24, 2024
It appears that Dana White was in a generous mood at today’s UFC 308 press conference. This Saturday night in Abu Dhabi, the UFC will put on one of their last pay-per-view cards of the year. For what it’s worth, the card is an excellent one. In the main event, featherweight champion Ilia Topuria will look to make his first title defense against Max Holloway. ‘Blessed’ earned the title opportunity with a knockout win over Justin Gaethje in April.
Dana White rips PFL's Donn Davis over latest event comparisons: "Talks a lot, but says nothing!"
Curtis Calhoun - October 24, 2024
UFC CEO Dana White quickly responded to PFL founder Donn Davis’s latest claims, comparing the two top MMA organizations. White and the UFC are hours away from one of their biggest cards of the year in Abu Dhabi. UFC 308 is headlined by a featherweight title clash between Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway.
'Optimistic' Donn Davis says Jon Jones vs. Francis Ngannou is unlikely, but not impossible
Fernando Quiles Jr. - October 24, 2024
PFL Chairman Donn Davis isn’t exactly ruling out Jon Jones vs. Francis Ngannou. Jones vs. Ngannou is a fight that escaped the UFC’s grasp. Ngannou, who was the reigning UFC heavyweight champion, decided to leave the promotion to pursue lucrative boxing matches and a PFL contract. While Jones and Ngannou traded barbs over the situation, “Bones” was recently complimentary of “The Predator’s” successful return to MMA.
Belal Muhammad dismisses Ilia Topuria's three-division champion claim: "Short guys always act like they’re tough"
Fernando Quiles Jr. - October 24, 2024
Belal Muhammad finds humor in Ilia Topuria’s plan to become a three-division UFC champion. Topuria is the reigning UFC featherweight champion. He will be putting his title at stake against Max Holloway in the main event of UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi this Saturday. It’s “El Matador’s” first attempt at a successful title defense.