MMA News
Paulo Costa calls out Kamaru Usman after loss to Robert Whittaker: "Looks interesting"
Cole Shelton - February 22, 2024
Paulo Costa has his eyes set on former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman for his next fight. Costa is coming off a decision loss to Robert Whittaker at UFC 298 in a very competitive fight, which also served as Paulo’s first scrap since August of 2022. Although the Brazilian didn’t get his hand raised, his stock went up in the loss and now he’s already campaigning for his next fight.
Pro fighters make their picks for Yair Rodriguez vs. Brian Ortega 2
Cole Shelton - February 22, 2024
In the co-main event of UFC Mexico City, a rematch between top-four featherweights goes down as Yair Rodriguez takes on Brian Ortega. Heading into the rematch, Rodriguez is a slight -158 favorite while ‘T-City’ is a +124 underdog on FanDuel. Ahead of the scrap, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to make their picks for the featherweight fight at UFC Mexico City. In their first fight back in July 2021 Rodriguez won in the first round due to a shoulder injury suffered by Ortega. However, in the rematch, the pros are actually going with the underdog in Ortega to pull off the upset.
Cory Sandhagen open to rebooking Umar Nurmagomedov fight as long as "he looks good" on March 2
Cole Shelton - February 22, 2024
Cory Sandhagen is open to fighting Umar Nurmagomedov his next time out. Sandhagen and Nurmagomedov were supposed to headline UFC Nashville last August, but an injury knocked the Dagestani fighter out of the fight. Sandhagen ended up getting a lopsided decision win over Rob Font on that card and hasn’t fought since. Nurmagomedov, meanwhile, is set to return to the Octagon on March 2 against UFC newcomer Bekzat Almakhan.
Johnny Eblen's girlfriend threatens to leave him with potential loss at PFL vs. Bellator: "I'm out"
Josh Evanoff - February 22, 2024
Bellator middleweight champion Johnny Eblen has high stakes heading into his return this weekend. ‘The Human Cheat Code’ is widely viewed as one of the greatest fighters outside of the UFC today. Last September, Johnny Eblen moved to 14-0 with a dominant knockout win over Fabian Edwards in the Bellator cage. Following the victory, he traded words with his opponent’s brother, Leon Edwards, in a moment that quickly went viral.
Jorge Masvidal opens up on plans for boxing return, potential Nate Diaz rematch
Josh Evanoff - February 22, 2024
Former UFC title challenger Jorge Masvidal wants to show boxing the respect it deserves. ‘Gamebred’ officially came out of retirement earlier this year. Now, that didn’t come as a huge shock, given the fact that Jorge Masvidal has teased a return to fighting for a while now. Last April, the former UFC title challenger retired after a lopsided unanimous decision defeat to Gilbert Burns in Miami.
Sean O'Malley changes tune as he calls for Merab Dvalishvili after Marlon Vera at UFC 299: "I’m knocking that dude out"
Cole Shelton - February 22, 2024
Sean O’Malley has changed his tune and is now interested in fighting Merab Dvalishvili. O’Malley said the plan was to fight Ilia Topuria for the featherweigh title if he gets past Marlon Vera. However, after hearing all the fans call for Dvalishvili get the next title shot, ‘Suga’ says he will grant that as he’s confident he would KO the Georgian.
WATCH | Former UFC champion Sean Strickland chokes out fan on snowy mountain
Josh Evanoff - February 22, 2024
Former UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland just can’t help but fight. ‘Tarzan’ is fresh off his first title defense at UFC 297 last month in Toronto. For Sean Strickland, the fight was his first since his stunning upset win over Israel Adesanya in September. For his first title defense, he faced the rising South African, Dricus du Plessis. ‘Stillknocks’ previously earned the championship opportunity with a knockout win over Robert Whittaker.
Francis Ngannou announces return fight in MMA after Anthony Joshua boxing match
Cole Shelton - February 22, 2024
Francis Ngannou will be returning to MMA and make his PFL debut. Following Ngannou becoming a free agent, he signed with PFL but said he would be exploring boxing fights first. He ended up getting a boxing match against Tyson Fury, which he lost by split decision, and will return to the boxing ring on March 8 in Saudi Arabia against Anthony Joshua.
Matched up! Who has the better lineup, UFC 299 or UFC 300?
Harry Kettle - February 22, 2024
The Ultimate Fighting Championship has two major PPVs coming up – UFC 299 and UFC 300. But which is better? Over the years, the UFC has established itself as the leading promotion in mixed martial arts. We’ve all known that to be the case for a long time, but it’s always nice when they remind us with some blockbuster events. Thankfully for casual and hardcore fans alike, we have two huge pay-per-views coming up in March and April.
Video | Merab Dvalishvili becomes the latest fighter to lay a beatdown on Sneako
Harry Kettle - February 22, 2024
UFC fighter Merab Dvalishvili has become the latest fighter to get into a grappling exchange with Sneako. Over the course of the last few years, Merab Dvalishvili has done a fantastic job of building up his star power. Between his social media presence and his wins in the cage, he’s become one of the most interesting fighters in the bantamweight division. Now, following his win over Henry Cejudo, he’s in line for the next title shot at 135 pounds.
Video | Alex Pereira is training with Steven Seagal ahead of UFC 300
Harry Kettle - February 22, 2024
UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira has been seen training with Steven Seagal heading into UFC 300. In the main event of UFC 300, Alex Pereira will defend his UFC light heavyweight championship against Jamahal Hill. While it’s a contest many have been waiting a long time to see, some are surprised to see it in the headline slot for such a blockbuster pay-per-view.
Chris Duncan vows to KO Manuel Torres and "silence" the Mexican crowd at UFC Mexico City: "I'm hunting for the finish"
Cole Shelton - February 21, 2024
Chris Duncan is ready to silence the crowd at UFC Mexico City. Duncan is set to face Manuel Torres at UFC Mexico City on Saturday, in his first fight since July. He was supposed to return in October against Terrance McKinney but a visa issue knocked him out of their fight, which was heartbreaking for him.
Brian Ortega doesn't think Alexander Volkanovski looked "like the same Volk" against Ilia Topuria at UFC 298
Cole Shelton - February 21, 2024
Brian Ortega doesn’t think Alexander Volanovski looked like his usual self in his UFC 298 title fight against Ilia Topuria. Volkanovski was coming off a KO loss to Islam Makhachev back in October for the lightweight title and was making a fairly quick turnaround to face the undefeated challenger. Heading into the fight, Volkanovski was a slight betting favorite, but Topuria was confident he would KO the champ.
Pro fighters make their picks for Brandon Moreno vs. Brandon Royval 2
Cole Shelton - February 21, 2024
In the main event of UFC Mexico City, a rematch between top-three flyweights goes down as Brandon Moreno takes on Brandon Royval. Heading into the fight, Moreno is a -310 favorite while the American is a +230 underdog. Ahead of the scrap, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to make their picks for the flyweight main event. The pros believe Moreno will get his hand raised again as he beat Royval back in 2020, and with the fight being in Mexico they believe he will let the crowd go home happy on Saturday night.
Jorge Masvidal eyeing future 'BMF against BMF' fight with Justin Gaethje: "I will break his f*cking orbital"
Josh Evanoff - February 21, 2024
Retired UFC fighter Jorge Masvidal really wants to fight the new ‘BMF’ titleholder Justin Gaethje. ‘Gamebred’ famously retired from MMA following a unanimous loss to Gilbert Burns last April. In the process, Jorge Masvidal vacated the symbolic ‘BMF’ championship. The Miami native won the gold with a 2019 stoppage win over Nate Diaz, but never defended it. Months later, the UFC announced plans to put the title on the line for Justin Gaethje vs. Dustin Poirier 2.
Alex Pereira reveals Jamahal Hill fight is first of new eight-fight UFC contract: "Very grateful"
Josh Evanoff - February 21, 2024
Light-heavyweight champion Alex Pereira won’t be leaving the UFC for quite a while. ‘Poatan’ is fresh off a battle for vacant light-heavyweight gold in November at UFC 295. In the main event of the New York card, Alex Pereira faced Jiri Prochazka. ‘Denisa’ never lost the title himself, but vacated it due to injury in late 2022. In his first fight back, he lost to the Brazilian by second-round knockout.
Dana White reveals Vladimir Putin gifts to Khabib Nurmagomedov after Conor McGregor win: "Whatever he wanted"
Josh Evanoff - February 21, 2024
Dana White has opened up on the aftermath of Khabib Nurmagomedov’s win over Conor McGregor at UFC 229. Over five years removed from UFC 229, the card is still the highest-grossing in MMA history. At the top of the billing, were lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, and Conor McGregor. Leading into the event, the two stars were in a heated feud, that would continue for years beyond that night in 2019.
Brandon Royval reveals Alexandre Pantoja will be in attendance for his UFC Mexico City main event against Brandon Moreno
Cole Shelton - February 21, 2024
UFC flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja will be in attendance for Saturday’s UFC Mexico City main event which sees Brandon Moreno rematch Brandon Royval. Moreno was supposed to headline the card against Amir Albazi, but the latter was forced to withdraw due to an injury and was replaced by Royval. With Moreno and Royval currently ranked in the top three, the winner of the main event could get the next title shot, despite both men coming off decision losses to Pantoja.