MMA News

BJPENN.COM News - September 21, 2015

World Series of Fighting and Bellator both ran major events this weekend and two Renzo Gracie fighters brought some gold back to the gym with them! Liam Mcgeary stepped into the Bellator cage on Saturday evening to defend his light heavyweight championship against the legendary Tito Ortiz. Ortiz was looking to secure gold for the first time since his dominant run in the octagon with the UFC and was well on his way of doing that when he blasted the champion with shots on the ground. Ortiz left himself susceptible to strikes when the tried to implement his ground and pound gameplan and walked into an inverted triangle choke! The jiu-jitsu paid off for Mcgeary as it put another “W” in his record.

BJPENN.COM News - September 21, 2015

“Phoenix Jones” is as close to a real life super-hero as people will see in the world of mixed martial arts. While some fighters are heroes in the sense of charitable work, “Phoenix Jones” actually patrols the streets at night and fights crime. Ben Fodor is used to dawning the gear to transform into his alter-ego “Phoenix Jones”, but he was wearing civilian clothes on Saturday night when he stopped a murder. Just a day after picking up his first victory in World Series of Fighting, Fodor tweeted out that he had stopped a murder in Seatlle at 2:30 in the morning.

BJPENN.COM News - September 21, 2015

Fans can expect some of the biggest names in mixed martial arts to make their way to Japan to see the return of Fedor Emelianenko live, but this potential spectator came out of left field. Former PRIDE FC President Nabuyuki Sakakibara announced the signing on “The Last Emperor” at Bellator’s “DYNAMITE” event on Saturday and confirmed he would be fighting in a new Japanese based promotion. While an opponent has yet to be named, it is official the fight will take place on New Year’s Eve on December 31, 2015. Emelianenko’s deal with the new promotion is expected to last only two fights, then the Russian’s future is up in the air after that.

BJPENN.COM News - September 21, 2015

Ben “Phoenix Jones” Fodor walked into the decagon at “WSOF 23: Gaethje vs. Palomino II” on Friday night knowing his career could change drastically if he suffered another loss. The super-hero turned World Series of Fighting athlete found little success in his first outing and needed a big win for job security. Not only did he get a big win, but it was in fantastic fashion as well. “Ali came to me and said, ‘Look, we’re paying you a lot of money. You didn’t win the first one. If you don’t win this one, we’re not going to cut you, but you’re going to have to take along break before you come back,’” Fodor told MMA Junkie. “I was like, ‘So basically, I need to win this fight or my career is on a lot of trouble.’”

BJPENN.COM News - September 21, 2015

World Series of Fighting took over the world of mixed martial arts last Friday with another exciting card in the form of “WSOF 23: Gaethje vs. Palomino 2”. Gaethje once again proved he was the most dominant champion in the promotion by sending Palomino down to the mat with a brutal combination, followed up by several shots that forced the referee to stop the fight. “I feel like I’m on top of the world. I gotta be honest with you,” Gaethje told MMA Fighting. “I don’t remember much of the fight, just like every fight I’ve been in.

BJPENN.COM News - September 21, 2015

Three championships were on the line at the Clark County Fairgrounds Event Center in Ridgefield, Washington when Titan FC held their thirty-fifth event, aired on UFC Fight Pass. Pat Healy walked into the weigh ins on Friday as the company’s lightweight champion but was stripped of the belt when he failed to make weight for his fight with Rick Hawn!

BJPENN.COM News - September 21, 2015

Students of Brazilian-Jiu-Jitsu only need to worry about a couple of things in the hygiene department before they step onto the mat for competition. Are your nails clipped? Did you brush your teeth? Do you smell like death? Forget competition— these are things every person should address before they leave the house! One thing you definitely try not to do on the mat, however, is pass gas while grappling an opponent, let alone ON their face. Just as a competitor was looking to lock in a submission hold, his opponent projectile vomited onto the mat! The match was likely ruled a no contest, but I guess you could count it as a verbal submission? Either way, check out the video below!

BJPENN.COM News - September 20, 2015

Fedor Emelianenko dropped a bombshell on the mixed martial arts community at “DYNAMITE” on Saturday evening when it was announced he would NOT be fighting for either Bellator or the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Instead, “The Last Emperor” will be squaring off in the main-event of brand new Japan based MMA promotion! The card is set to take place on New Year’s Eve and will mark Fedor’s first fight in Japan since 2011.

BJPENN.COM News - September 20, 2015

When Reebok and Ultimate Fighting Championship signed an exclusive in-octagon sponsorship deal, fighters were reluctant to celebrate. Fighters like Urijah Faber would be forbidden from promoting his clothing line, Torque, in the octagon like he used to in earlier UFC and WEC days. Miesha Tate and Brendan Schaub sponsorship income would decrease by at least 80% due to the inability to rock external sponsorships in the octagon. UFC lightweight Josh Thomson was one of the first fighters to make the choice not to re-sign with the UFC and jump ship to Bellator, following Phil Davis. On Saturday night, “The Real Punk” informed MMA Fighting that three sponsors alone paid him more than $35,000 for his fight on Saturday at Bellator’s “DYNAMITE” event!

BJPENN.COM News - September 20, 2015

Tito Ortiz is one of the most decorated fighters to step inside a cage, whether it be the UFC’s octagon or Bellator’s cage. He started his professional fighting career in 1997 and is still receiving opportunities at championship gold in 2015— and it’s not just because of his star-power. Ortiz was riding a two fight win streak at the time he signed the dotted line to challenge Liam Mcgeary at “DYNAMITE” on Saturday night and was undefeated in the Viacom owned promotion. With big wins over Alexander Shlemenko and Stephan Bonnar, Ortiz seemed like a viable opponent for Mcgeary. Mcgeary did a fantastic job at catching the former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion off guard with a reverse triangle submission however, and picked up a quick first round win.

BJPENN.COM News - September 20, 2015

Bellator and GLORY showcased the best of their promotions on Saturday night with the spectacle that was “DYNAMITE 1”. Tito Ortiz and Liam Mcgeary headlined the event with a Bellator Light Heavyweight Championship fight. For the first time in nearly nine years, “The People’s Champion” Ortiz had the opportunity to capture gold. Unfortunately for him, Mcgeary is as game as they come. Mcgeary endured Ortiz’s takedowns and attempt at ground and pound but ended up getting caught in a slick reverse rear naked choke. Fans expected a reason or two from Ortiz as to why he lost, but he offered no excuses.

BJPENN.COM News - September 20, 2015

In April 2015, Phil Davis made the biggest decision of his career when he jumped ship from the Ultimate Fighting Championship to Bellator. Davis surely made an impact on his first fight with his new company as he won two fights in one night to become the next Bellator Light Heavyweight Championship challenger! Davis didn’t even need five minutes to dispose of former champion Emanuel Newton on Saturday night at “DYNAMITE”. Newton landed some good shots on Davis, but “Mr. Wonderful” locked on a kimura that there was no escape from. “King Mo” won the semi-final bout on the opposite end of the bracket but injury kept him from competing for the right to fight for another championship.

BJPENN.COM News - September 20, 2015

In the night’s main event, at Bellator ‘Dynamite’, undefeated light heavyweight champion Liam McGeary took on MMA vet Tito Ortiz. Early on it was Tito imposing his gameplan, getting McGeary down to the mat and working some ground and pound.

BJPENN.COM News - September 20, 2015

Former UFC lightweight Josh Thomson pulled off a big win in his Bellator debut. He fought Mike Bronzoulis in front of his home crowd and put on quite the performance. Thomson was clearly the better grappler and was able to get the fight to the ground whenever he wanted to.

BJPENN.COM News - September 20, 2015

Floyd Mayweather picked up some criticism for how he fought against Manny Pacquiao in May, but there is no denying his most recent performances were anything short of impressive. He walked into the ring looking to secure another win and walked out with his hand raised without so much of a cut on his face. Mayweather’s last bout took place earlier this month when he went toe-to-toe with Andre Berto in another decision victory. Again, Mayweather gained criticism from boxing fans for not engaging in a slugging brawl but his corner was clearly happy with is performance in the final round of his final fight. Watch his corner get emotional at the end of their fight!

BJPENN.COM News - September 20, 2015

Diehard fans of mixed martial arts who have been dreaming of watching Fedor Emelianenko throw down in the octagon let out a collective groan when it was announced he would be fighting in a new Japan-based promotion on New Years Eve. On the bright side, “The Last Emperor” will be returning to the “Land of the Rising Sun” where PRIDE helped him make a name for himself! Check out what some of the biggest names in the mixed martial arts community had to say about Fedor’s return to action in Japan:

BJPENN.COM News - September 20, 2015

Martial arts legend Steven Seagal claims to have helped train some of mixed martial arts most elite champions on their path to gold. The likes of Anderson Silva and Lyoto Machida have thanked Seagal for help in their post-fight speeches and have been seen training with them in various videos, but fans and fighters alike have questioned the icon’s legitimacy. While there is no doubt of Seagal’s elite level in the world of Aikido, people are questioning the effectiveness of the martial art in actual combat. UFC commentator Joe Rogan thinks Aikido has no place in the octagon and anybody who is training in combat sports could easily take down an Aikido student! Check out what Rogan had to say to Andrew Hill, a neuroscientist who believes Aikido is a valid combat art, about Aikido!

BJPENN.COM News - September 20, 2015

Fedor Emelianenko will not be fighting in the octagon nor will he be duking it out in the Bellator cage; “The Last Emperor” announced his signing with a new Japanese based promotion on Saturday night during “DYNAMITE”. The Japanese promotion has yet to be named but is run by one of the men behind the legendary PRIDE promotion, Nobuyuki Sakakibara. Emelianenko’s history at New Year’s Eve shows is legendary, to say the least. The Russian possesses December 31st wins against Satoshi Ishii, Hong Man Choi, Mark Hunt, Zuluzinho, and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. Hunt is still tearing up the octagon and Nogueira just NOW retired— there is no doubt that Fedor has defeated some of the best of the octagon!