MMA News

Josh Evanoff - November 27, 2023

UFC lightweight contender Paddy Pimblett isn’t a fan of Tony Ferguson’s recent training. ‘The Baddy’ and ‘El Cucuy’ are currently set to meet at UFC 296 next month in Las Vegas. Heading into the lightweight bout, the two men have had vastly different fortunes lately. For his part, Paddy Pimblett is undefeated in his promotional journey thus far. Meanwhile, Tony Ferguson has lost his last six fights in a row.

Josh Evanoff - November 27, 2023

PFL lightweight tournament winner Olivier Aubin-Mercier knew it was time on Friday night. Over the weekend, ‘The Canadian Gangster’ returned against Clay Collard in the main event of PFL 10. The pay-per-view offering saw the return of names such as Kayla Harrison but featured Olivier Aubin-Mercier in the main event. For his part, he entered the bout riding a nine-fight winning streak and won the previous lightweight season.

Josh Evanoff - November 27, 2023

Erin Blanchfield believes a UFC interim title bout with Manon Fiorot might be on the table. ‘Cold Blooded’ has been out of the cage since a unanimous decision win over Taila Santos in August. That was Erin Blanchfield’s ninth win in a row, previously defeating names such as Jessica Andrade. Following her victory, she called to fight the rising Manon Fiorot next. ‘The Beast’ last defeated Rose Namajunas in September.

Cole Shelton - November 27, 2023

Interim UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall is hoping to fight Stipe Miocic next. Aspinall became the interim heavyweight champion with a first-round knockout over Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 295. Although he’s the interim champ, Aspinall is in a weird spot as Jon Jones will be out for several months and will likely face Miocic once he returns.

Harry Kettle - November 27, 2023

Tony Ferguson’s DUI charge has reportedly been dismissed, and he will instead receive probation for a reckless driving plea. Back in early May, Tony Ferguson was arrested and booked into jail after allegedly crashing his truck into two cars parked outside a nightclub in California. There were no injuries, as per a police spokesperson, with ‘El Cucuy’ previously pleading not guilty.

Harry Kettle - November 27, 2023

UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley has cast doubt on Aljamain Sterling’s longevity at featherweight. Earlier this year, Sean O’Malley knocked out Aljamain Sterling to claim the bantamweight crown. Prior to doing so, ‘Funk Master’ had teased the idea of making a move up to featherweight from 135 pounds. Even in the aftermath of the loss to O’Malley, Sterling made it clear that a switch to featherweight is still very much something he’s considering.

Harry Kettle - November 27, 2023

Former UFC title challenger Paulo Costa has hinted that he will make his return to the Octagon at UFC 297 next year. For the longest time now, Paulo Costa has served as one of the most interesting characters in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Between his fight style and his infectious personality, the Brazilian has certainly turned a few heads since becoming one of the top contenders at middleweight. Some love him and some hate him, but nobody can deny the impact he has as a figure in mixed martial arts.

BJPENN.COM Staff - November 27, 2023

Felipe Lobo has one goal in mind when he returns to the ring on December 8 — to knock out Saemapetch Fairtex once again. Both men are scheduled to run it back in a bantamweight Muay Thai showdown at ONE Fight Night 17 on Prime Video. This event airs in U.S. primetime from the legendary Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

BJPENN.COM Staff - November 27, 2023

ONE Championship will kick off 2024 with a bang on Amazon’s Prime Video, featuring a potential barnburner between Kwon Won Il and Shinechagtga Zoltsetseg. Both bantamweight MMA hard-hitters collide at ONE Fight Night 18 on Prime Video. The event takes place at the iconic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, airing live in U.S. primetime on January 12.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - November 26, 2023

Kayla Harrison doesn’t know what Cris Cyborg will do in the wake of the PFL-Bellator merger, but she wants to end the wonder of how a fight between them would go. Not long after announcing the acquisition of Bellator, PFL founder Donn Davis revealed to Ariel Helwani that all of Bellator’s fighter contracts have been picked up as well. Despite this, Cyborg hasn’t fully committed to fighting under the PFL umbrella. She also hasn’t taken too kindly to Davis already laying out plans for her, such as a bout with PFL 2023 women’s featherweight champion Larissa Pacheco.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - November 26, 2023

Former UFC fighter and current head of fighter operations for PFL Europe Dan Hardy believes Francis Ngannou has the edge over Anthony Joshua in a potential boxing match. Ngannou has made waves in boxing world after nearly defeating WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury in a 10-round match. Ngannou lost the bout via split decision. In the aftermath of the fight, Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn has shared interest in booking a boxing match with Ngannou.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - November 26, 2023

PFL founder Donn Davis believes Patchy Mix has an edge over UFC bantamweight titleholder Sean O’Malley. Davis has been doing the media rounds since announcing the acquisition of Bellator. He was available to speak with reporters during post-fight press conference for the 2023 PFL Championships. When talking about how a cross-promotion bout between Bellator bantamweight champion Patchy Mix and O’Malley would go, Davis sounded confident in who is the better fighter.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - November 26, 2023

Having wrapped up his first fight under the PFL banner with a victory, Derek Brunson sees two big bouts in his future. Brunson had a successful PFL debut on November 24, defeating former two-time PFL welterweight champion Ray Cooper via unanimous decision. During his post-fight press conference, Brunson called for a clash with social media star turned boxer and PFL fighter Jake Paul.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - November 26, 2023

Chris Curtis has an explanation for his exit on the Twitter/X platform. Curtis found himself in the middle of MMA fan cringe on the social media site involving Ian Garry and Sean Strickland. Garry threatened to sue Strickland over comments he made about his wife. Despite being Strickland’s training partner and friend, Curtis came to the defense of Garry, prompting the keyboard warriors to rise from the sewers.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - November 26, 2023

Ian Garry has threatened a lawsuit on UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland. By now, MMA fans are well aware that Strickland has no filter, and his recent comments on Garry’s wife are no exception. Recently, fans have taken aim at Garry’s wife for writing a book titled, “How to be a WAG.” It has led some to believe Garry’s wife only married him due to his status as an athlete.

Josh Evanoff - November 24, 2023

UFC light-heavyweight champion Alex Pereira doesn’t see much of a point in fighting Khamzat Chimaev. ‘Poatan’ is fresh off his return to the cage opposite Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295 earlier this month. There, Alex Pereria scored a second-round knockout win over ‘Denisa’. In the process, the Brazilian became light-heavyweight champion, and quickly eyed a potential trilogy with Israel Adesanya.

Susan Cox - November 24, 2023

Jan Blachowicz is explaining why he called Alex Pereira a ‘slimy one’ following his UFC 295 title win. It was Alex Pereira (9-2 MMA) vs Jiří Procházka (29-4 MMA) in a light heavyweight title fight at UFC 295 on November 11th at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The outcome was a TKO victory for Pereira at 4:08 of round 2 to claim light heavyweight gold.

Susan Cox - November 24, 2023

Joaquin Buckley is saying he plans to step in for Stephen Thompson after ‘Wonderboy’ bails on his fight with Shavkat Rakhmonov. UFC 296 takes place on Saturday, December 16th at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada.