MMA News
Chael Sonnen warns Conor McGregor that Israel Adesanya is coming for his spot: “ Izzy is coming for top draw in this sport”
Harry Kettle - July 12, 2023
Chael Sonnen believes there is a chance Israel Adesanya could overtake Conor McGregor and become the biggest draw in the UFC. The rise of Israel Adesanya has been pretty remarkable. The two-time UFC middleweight champion is back on top of the world, and later this year, he’s set to defend his belt against Dricus du Plessis. Based on their interaction at UFC 290, it could well be one of the most personal fights of his career thus far.
Dominick Cruz expresses concern over Stipe Miocic’s training regiment: “You’re not fighting a fire, you’re fighting Jon Jones”
Harry Kettle - July 12, 2023
Dominick Cruz has questioned the training of Stipe Miocic ahead of his UFC 295 clash with Jon Jones later this year. As announced earlier this month, Stipe Miocic is set to return to the Octagon this November when he challenges Jon Jones for the UFC heavyweight championship. We haven’t seen Stipe in almost three years, dating back to his knockout defeat at the hands of Francis Ngannou in March 2021.
Terrance McKinney plans to prove Nazim Sadykhov is not the "guy he thinks he is" with a first-round finish at UFC Vegas 77
Cole Shelton - July 11, 2023
Terrance McKinney is excited to show off his improvements. McKinney is coming off a KO loss to Ismael Bonfim back in January at UFC 283 and after the defeat, he decided to change camps. Terrance McKinney decided to go down to Texas and start training with Kevin Holland which he says has been a major benefit to him.
Bruce Buffer explains why he wants to see Logan Paul fight Paddy Pimblett in the UFC
Cole Shelton - July 11, 2023
Bruce Buffer is interested in seeing Logan Paul face Paddy Pimblett in the UFC. Paul has expressed interest in fighting in MMA as he has a wrestling background and also has some boxing fights. He also gets along with Dana White and recently asked to fight Paddy Pimblett inside of the Octagon.
Jimmy Crute announces he is "stepping away" from MMA until he has a "healthy and sustainable mindset"
Cole Shelton - July 11, 2023
Jimmy Crute will be stepping away from MMA. At UFC 290, Crute suffered a submission loss to Alonzo Menifield after the two fought to a draw back in February. It was a tough loss for Crute and after the defeat, he took his gloves and laid them down in the center of the Octagon. However, his team later revealed Jimmy Crute isn’t actually retired.
Kevin Lee explains why he is retiring from MMA at age 30
Cole Shelton - July 11, 2023
Kevin Lee has opened up on why he decided to retire at age 30. Lee surprised many on Tuesday morning when he took to the new social media platform Threads to announce his retirement. After the short post, ‘The Motown Phenom’ took to Instagram to detail why he decided to retire from MMA at just 30 years old. Even though he is walking away from the sport, Kevin Lee says he is happy with his career as he never backed away from any challenge, but injuries have caused him to retire.
PFL hires USADA to test fighters after recent wave of drug failures
Josh Evanoff - July 11, 2023
The PFL has decided to hire USADA after a recent string of drug failures. In April, the company had a series of fighters fail their drug tests in Nevada. Furthermore, it wasn’t just a prelim fighter or two, it was multiple high-profile competitors. Former tournament winners Rob Wilkinson and Bruno Cappelozza tested positive, as did new signee Thiago Santos.
Francis Ngannou and Tyson Fury go back and forth after fight announcement: "I've been ready"
Josh Evanoff - July 11, 2023
The war of words between Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou has already begun. Earlier today, ‘The Gypsy King’ and ‘The Predator’ announced their massive boxing match. Last month, Tyson Fury’s planned December fight with Oleksandr Usyk fell apart due to financial demands. As a result, Francis Ngannou, who had been linked to boxing matches with Deontay Wilder and Derek Chisora, decided to change course.
PHOTO | Israel Adesanya and Alexander Volkanovski train with shredded Mark Zuckerberg
Josh Evanoff - July 11, 2023
UFC champions Israel Adesanya and Alexander Volkanovski believe Mark Zuckerberg is serious about fighting. The tech mogul and owner of Meta, has long been an MMA fan. Over the last year, Mark Zuckerberg has begun training in the sport as well, having competed in jiu-jitsu tournaments. Furthermore, the businessman has started to form friendships in the combat sports world, even training with Alexander Volkanovski earlier this year.
Alexandre Pantoja enters the pound-for-pound rankings following title win over Brandon Moreno at UFC 290
Susan Cox - July 11, 2023
Alexandre Pantoja has entered the pound-for-pound rankings following title win over Brandon Moreno at UFC 290. UFC 290 took place last Saturday, July 8th at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Dan Hooker reckons Israel Adesanya was trying to bait Dricus Du Plessis during heated confrontation at UFC 290
Susan Cox - July 11, 2023
Dan Hooker believes Israel Adesanya was trying to bait Dricus Du Plessis during their heated confrontation at UFC 290. UFC lightweight contender Dan Hooker (23-12 MMA) believes his teammate, Israel Adesanya, was baiting Dricus du Plessis with his racial slur-filled tirade this past Saturday.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk approves of Ronda Rousey fighting for the UFC bantamweight title in rumored return: “It’s her belt”
Susan Cox - July 11, 2023
Joanna Jedrzejczyk is approving of Ronda Rousey fighting for the UFC bantamweight title. The former strawweight queen, Joanna Jedrejczyk, is quite okay with Ronda Rousey returning to the Octagon for a bantamweight title fight.
Tyson Fury vs Francis Ngannou made official for October 28 in Saudi Arabia
Susan Cox - July 11, 2023
Kevin Lee announces his retirement from the UFC
Susan Cox - July 11, 2023
Kevin Lee has announced his retirement from the UFC. ‘The Motown Phenom’ (18-8 MMA) most recently fought Rinat Fakhretdinov (21-1 MMA) on Saturday July 1st in a welterweight bout. The outcome was a submission win for ‘Gladiator’ at 0:55 of Round 1.
Just Scrap Radio Ep. 130 with Terrance McKinney, Austin Lingo, and Evan Elder
Cole Shelton - July 11, 2023
The 130th episode of Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com with host Cole Shelton is live ahead of UFC Vegas 77 this Saturday. We’re first joined by UFC lightweight Terrance McKinney (2:06). Next, UFC featherweight Austin Lingo (15:04) comes on. Closing out the program is UFC lightweight Evan Elder (23:14).
Miesha Tate says there is a new lease on life for UFC bantamweights following Amanda Nunes’ retirement: “There’s no way any of us were beating her”
Harry Kettle - July 11, 2023
Miesha Tate believes there’s a new lease on life for the UFC women’s bantamweight division following the retirement of Amanda Nunes. Last month, Amanda Nunes retired from mixed martial arts. She did so as a two-weight UFC champion, going out on top – something very few fighters are able to do. In doing so, she vacated both belts, including the bantamweight strap – a championship she had to win back from Julianna Pena.
UFC legend Donald Cerrone says he feels “21 again” after no longer having to abide by USADA rules: “Get on the TRT and put your wife in a bind”
Harry Kettle - July 11, 2023
UFC legend Donald Cerrone claims he feels young again now that he doesn’t have to abide by USADA regulations. Last year, Donald Cerrone decided to hang up his gloves and walk away from mixed martial arts. It came after he fell to a second round submission defeat at the hands of Jim Miller, a fellow UFC veteran. Ever since then, Cerrone hasn’t been shy about his TRT use, noting some of the benefits he’s been able to get from it.
Geoff Neal sounds off after upcoming opponent Ian Garry wore a t-shirt with his mugshot to UFC 290: “He’s dead”
Harry Kettle - July 11, 2023
Geoff Neal and his father have gone off on Ian Garry for wearing a t-shirt with his mugshot on as the countdown to their fight continues. At UFC 292 next month in Boston, Geoff Neal and Ian Garry are set to go head to head. For Garry, he’ll be aiming to maintain his unbeaten record. For Neal, he’ll try and get back on the winning trail after his fascinating contest with Shavkat Rakhmonov earlier this year. Both still view themselves as welterweight contenders, but there’s certainly more hype on the Garry train right now.
Robert Whittaker issues statement following TKO loss to Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 290
Chris Taylor - July 10, 2023
Robert Whittaker has issued a statement following his TKO loss to Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 290. Whittaker (24-7 MMA), the promotion’s former middleweight title holder, collided with surging 185lbs contender Du Plessis (20-2 MMA) on the main card of Saturday’s pay-per-view event in Las Vegas. It was a high stakes matchup as the winner would be awarded the next title shot against reigning middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.