MMA News

BJPENN.COM Staff - April 2, 2026

ONE Championship has reshuffled its April 10 doubleheader. The vacant ONE Lightweight Kickboxing World Title fight between Regian “The Immortal” Eersel and Rungrawee “Legatron” Sitsongpeenong has moved to headline The Inner Circle. It streams live in Asia primetime from Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. Meanwhile, the welterweight MMA clash between undefeated contenders Chase “Mannimal” Mann and Dzhabir Dzhabrailov has been elevated to headline ONE Fight Night 42 on Prime Video, live in U.S. primetime.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - April 2, 2026

Renato Moicano wasn’t exactly moved when he heard Estaban Ribovics calling his name. Moicano was expected to meet Brian Ortega in a rematch at UFC 326, but things didn’t pan out. He will instead be competing against Chris Duncan at UFC Vegas 115 on Saturday. Before Duncan got the booking, Ribovics was pounding the table for a showdown with “Money” Moicano.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - April 2, 2026

Joe Pyfer believes there is a key game plan to give Khamzat Chimaev fits. Pyfer has been rising up the middleweight rankings, and his stock has never been higher after stopping former 185-pound king Israel Adesanya at UFC Seattle. Pyfer could eventually find himself in a title fight, and he’ll be keeping a close eye on the UFC 328 main event between Chimaev and Sean Strickland.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - April 2, 2026

Charles Oliveira is aware of recent comments from Nate Diaz, and he’s open to sharing the Octagon with the fan favorite veteran. Diaz recently spoke to Theo Von, and as expected, he didn’t mince words. The Stockton native discussed a slew of topics, including why he didn’t want a Conor McGregor trilogy right away. He also targeted Oliveira, claiming he’d “beat the [expletive]” out of the BMF champion.

Harry Kettle - April 2, 2026

UFC veteran Renato Moicano has explained why he feels like he has to win against Chris Duncan in his next fight. On Saturday night, Renato Moicano will return to action when he goes up against Chris Duncan, a man he has trained against in the past. The 36-year-old is coming off the back of consecutive losses, and he is eager to prove that he still has what it takes to compete at the elite level.

Harry Kettle - April 2, 2026

MMA analyst Chael Sonnen has given his thoughts on Sean Strickland’s upcoming fight against Khamzat Chimaev. At UFC 328, Sean Strickland will get his chance to try and become a two-time UFC middleweight champion when he challenges Khamzat Chimaev for the belt. While many favor Chimaev to win, Sean certainly has the skills necessary to cause him some real problems.

Curtis Calhoun - April 1, 2026

Former UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili suffered a brutal nose injury that could indefinitely postpone his Octagon return plans. Merab Dvalishvili suffered a shocking rematch loss to Petr Yan in their UFC 323 bantamweight title rematch in December. After a 14-fight winning streak, Dvalishvili lost to Yan by unanimous decision to bring his bantamweight title reign to an abrupt end.

BJPENN.COM Staff - April 1, 2026

Enkh-Orgil Baatarkhuu has already done what most fighters never will. The ONE Bantamweight MMA World Champion submitted Fabricio Andrade in December to claim the belt and become only the second Mongolian to hold ONE MMA gold. Now, barely four months into his reign, his ambitions have already moved to the next mountain.

Curtis Calhoun - April 1, 2026

UFC legend Nate Diaz explained his choice to taunt Leon Edwards instead of potentially finishing him with seconds left in their fight. Before UFC superstar Nate Diaz parted ways with the promotion, one of his legendary bouts came against former UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards at UFC 263. However, the Stockton standout ended up losing on the scorecards despite a last-second comeback threat.

Cole Shelton - April 1, 2026

Renato Moicano is looking forward to his fight against Chris Duncan at UFC Vegas 115. Moicano is set to headline the Fight Night card on Saturday in a pivotal fight at lightweight. Heading into the bout, Moicano is a +150 underdog while Duncan is a -194 favorite on FanDuel. It’s a highly anticipated fight, as both Moicano and Duncan are known for their entertaining styles, but the Brazilian has full confidence that he is the more technical fighter, which will be the difference.

Curtis Calhoun - April 1, 2026

Former UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley played a brutal prank on his fans ahead of his upcoming fight at the White House. One of UFC Freedom 250’s biggest fights pits former bantamweight titleholder Sean O’Malley against rising contender Aiemann Zahabi in a title eliminator matchup on the six-fight card. O’Malley will return to the Octagon after an impressive win over Song Yadong at UFC 324 in January, after back-to-back losses to Merab Dvalishvili.

BJPENN.COM Staff - April 1, 2026

Takeru “Natural Born Krusher” Segawa has been thinking about this moment for years. Not with dread, but with the quiet precision of someone who has spent a career refusing to do anything halfway. The 34-year-old Japanese kickboxing icon will make his farewell appearance in the main event of ONE SAMURAI 1 on April 29, live from Ariake Arena in Tokyo, with the ONE Interim Flyweight Kickboxing World Title on the line against Rodtang “The Iron Man” Jitmuangnon.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - April 1, 2026

Jiri Prochazka and Carlos Ulberg are set to collide with interim UFC gold at stake, but one renowned analyst and coach doesn’t think it feels like a title bout. The UFC Light Heavyweight Championship has been vacated by Alex Pereira. “Poatan” will be facing Ciryl Gane for the interim UFC Heavyweight Championship at UFC Freedom 250 on June 14. Prochazka and Ulberg will do battle for the 205-pound title in the main event of UFC 327 on April 11 in Miami.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - April 1, 2026

Sean Strickland will be challenging Khamzat Chimaev for the middleweight gold at UFC 328, but Colby Covington doesn’t think he stands a chance. Strickland earned an0ther 185-pound title fight after he scored a second-round TKO finish over Anthony Hernandez at UFC Houston. Chimaev, who hasn’t competed since he won the middleweight gold back in Aug. 2025, has had some social media beef with Strickland and the two will settle things on May 9 in Newark.

BJ Penn Staff - April 1, 2026

Ronda Rousey has been called out for lying ahead of her anticipated returned MMA. Rousey, a former bronze medalist Olympian in judo, rose to superstardom as the first ever female champion in the UFC. She ruled over the women’s bantamweight division for several years, dominating all of her early opposition, and headlining multiple successful pay-per-views. She has not fought since she suffered a quick and brutal knockout loss to Amanda Nunes in 2016, but on May 16, will make her anticipated return to action against fellow women’s MMA pioneer Gina Carano.

BJ Penn Staff - April 1, 2026

UFC star Paddy Pimblett cuts a lot of weight to make the 156-pound lightweight limit. Pimblett, a former Cage Warriors champ from the United Kingdom, is now one of the top contenders in the UFC lightweight division. However, it’s never been a secret that his weight balloons far beyond the lightweight limit in between fights, largely because of his love for food.

Harry Kettle - April 1, 2026

UFC commentator Daniel Cormier has given his thoughts on Israel Adesanya’s choices during his UFC Seattle defeat. Last weekend, Israel Adesanya fell to a disappointing defeat at the hands of Joe Pyfer in the main event of UFC Seattle. It served as his fourth straight loss in mixed martial arts, and his third via finish. As you can imagine, this led many to wonder whether or not it was time for Stylebender to contemplate retirement.

Harry Kettle - April 1, 2026

Ilia Topuria has opened up on his childhood as fans prepare to see him make his return to the cage this summer. As we know, Ilia Topuria is one of the most dangerous fighters in all of mixed martial arts. He’s also one of the biggest stars, too, especially in Spain and Georgia. Of course, ‘El Matador’ has had a long road to get to the top, and while a lot of the focus is on his UFC White House main event against Justin Gaethje, it’s always important to look back on the journey that got these big stars to the dance.