MMA News

Susan Cox - July 25, 2023

Sean Strickland is slamming former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker for his UFC 290 loss to Dricus Du Plessis. It was earlier this month that Robert Whittaker (24-7 MMA) and Dricus Du Plessis (20-2 MMA) met in the Octagon at UFC 290. The result was a TKO loss for Whittaker at 2:23 of round 2.

Zain Bando - July 25, 2023

Let’s face it — the UFC is popular with males age 18-34. With the rise in streaming capability becoming easier by the day, so is the access to other Internet mediums, including illegal streaming. Over two years after UFC president Dana White proclaimed he was “watching” an anonymous person’s house ahead of UFC 257, then headlined by Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier in their second fight, another incident arose just one week ago. This is the second known story related to pay-per-view access in 2023.

Susan Cox - July 25, 2023

Ben Askren has shared direct messages with Dana White regarding a potential UFC rematch with Jorge Masvidal. Jorge Masvidal (35-17 MMA) and Ben Askren (19-2 MMA) met in the Octagon in July of 2019 at UFC 239. The result was a knockout victory for Masvidal at 0:05 of Round 1. It was to be the fastest KO in UFC history.

Cole Shelton - July 25, 2023

Tony Ferguson says he is now fighting for himself and no one else. Ferguson is set to return to the lightweight division at UFC 291 as he faces Bobby Green. It’s an intriguing matchup as ‘El Cucuy’ has struggled as of late. Ferguson has lost five in a row, but outside of Nate Diaz in his last fight, he has only lost to top-five fighters. Before losing to Diaz, he suffered losses to Justin Gaethje, Charles Oliveira, Beneil Dariush, and Michael Chandler.

Susan Cox - July 25, 2023

Jon Jones is dismissing Tom Aspinall as being a legitimate threat to his UFC heavyweight title. It was Tom Aspinall (13-3 MMA) vs Marcin Tybura (24-8 MMA) featured in the heavyweight main event this past Saturday at UFC London. The result was a technical knockout victory for Aspinall at 1:13 of round 1.

Cole Shelton - July 25, 2023

The 132nd episode of Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com with host Cole Shelton is live ahead of UFC 291 this Saturday. We’re first joined by third-ranked UFC light heavyweight Jan Blachowicz (1:42). Next, seventh-ranked UFC welterweight Stephen Thompson (16:22) stops by. Closing out the program is UFC welterweight Trevin Giles (29:18).

Harry Kettle - July 25, 2023

Zabit Magomedsharipov has claimed that the Ultimate Fighting Championship offered him a title shot to try and get him out of retirement. In recent years, Zabit Magomedsharipov has been one of the biggest ‘what ifs’ in mixed martial arts. Beyond that, you could argue that claim extends to the entire history of the sport. With an 18-1 pro record and a 6-0 record in the UFC, it always felt as if Zabit was destined for a world title. Unfortunately, we haven’t seen him in the Octagon since November 2019 when he beat Calvin Kattar.

Harry Kettle - July 25, 2023

According to a recent report from Giorgi Kokiashvili, Derek Brunson and Roman Dolidze will collide at UFC 295. The middleweight division is certainly looking interesting right now. While Israel Adesanya may still be running the show as champion, there are plenty of hungry contenders hoping to make a push for a title shot.

Harry Kettle - July 25, 2023

Chael Sonnen is set to make his return to the broadcast booth for the first time in 16 months at UFC 291. For so long now, Chael Sonnen has been one of the most notable analysts in mixed martial arts. Ever since hanging up his gloves, he’s focused on giving his thoughts on the sport – regardless of how niche or controversial they may be.

Cole Shelton - July 24, 2023

Justin Gaethje wants the chance to prove Islam Makhachev is not as good as Khabib Nurmagomedov. Gaethje fought Nurmagomedov back at UFC 254 in October 2020 and it was Nurmagomedov winning by second-round submission. After the win, Nurmagomedov announced his retirement from MMA which did catch many by surprise.

Cole Shelton - July 24, 2023

In the main event of UFC London, ranked heavyweights took center stage as Tom Aspinall was taking on Marcin Tybura. Aspinall entered the fight coming off a year away after tearing his MCL just seconds into his fight against Curtis Blaydes last July. Prior to that, the Brit was 5-0 in the UFC and had beaten the likes of Alexander Volkov and Andrei Arlovski by stoppage. Tybura, meanwhile, was on a two-fight winning streak and was 7-1 in his last eight entering his main event spot.

Cole Shelton - July 24, 2023

Khamzat Chimaev is confident he will beat Paulo Costa with ease at UFC 294. Chimaev is set to make his return to the middleweight division in Abu Dhabi in October when he faces Costa. It’s an intriguing matchup and it’s a fight that finally ends both of their layoffs. However, according to the Swede, he has been trying to fight but Kamaru Usman kept turning him down.

Josh Evanoff - July 24, 2023

UFC middleweight contender Paul Craig has explained why he called out Bo Nickal. ‘Bearjew’ made his middleweight debut over the weekend at UFC London. Riding a two-fight losing streak, the Scottish fighter faced off with Andre Muniz. The Brazilian entered the matchup off a submission loss to Brendan Allen and later suffered a devastating stoppage at the loss of Paul Craig on Saturday.

Josh Evanoff - July 24, 2023

UFC women’s flyweight contender Molly McCann is ready to make a big change after her loss to Julija Stoliarenko. At UFC London over the weekend, ‘Meatball’ made her high-profile return. The fight was the British star’s first since a one-sided submission loss to Erin Blanchfield last November. Sadly for Molly McCann, it was Déjà vu against Julija Stoliarenko in the co-main event on Saturday. For her part, Lithuanian entered the contest as a massive underdog, holding a 1-4 promotional record.

Josh Evanoff - July 24, 2023

UFC heavyweight contender Tom Aspinall believes Jon Jones was a little patronizing over the weekend. The British fighter returned to the cage on Saturday night in the main event of UFC London. There, Tom Aspinall was back for the first time since his stoppage loss to Curtis Blaydes last July, where he lost due to injury. Back at UFC London, the British fighter made up for lost time against Marcin Tybura.

Cole Shelton - July 24, 2023

Justin Gaethje has some violent expectations for his BMF title fight against Dustin Poirier. Gaethje and Poirier are set to have their rematch in the main event of UFC 291 on Saturday in a highly-anticipated fight. The two fought back in April of 2018 where it was Poirier who won by fourth-round TKO in the best fight of 2018 and one of the best scraps of recent memory.

Cole Shelton - July 24, 2023

UFC Hall of Famer Pat Miletich will be returning to the cage at age 55. Miletich last fought in MMA back in 2008 when he scored a KO win over Thomas Denny. Since then, Miletich has been working as a commentator starting with Strikeforce in 2009 and then with LFA. However, Miletich was fired from his commentary position at LFA for being present in Washington D.C. at the 2021 storming of the United States Capitol.

Susan Cox - July 24, 2023

Daniel Cormier believes a win over Paulo Costa at UFC 294 will earn Khamzat Chimaev a middleweight title shot. UFC 294 takes place on Saturday, October 21st at the Etihad Arena in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi.