MMA News

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 21, 2023

Unofficial staredown scorer Michael Bisping thinks he knows who had the edge in the faceoff between UFC Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones and PFL star Francis Ngannou. Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou ran into each other during the PFL 5 event recently. The two were sizing each other up during their staredown. While it was a cool moment for MMA fans, the reality has quickly set in. This fight will not be taking place after Ngannou and the UFC couldn’t come to terms on a new contract.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 21, 2023

UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier has a takeaway from the staredown between UFC Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones and PFL star Francis Ngannou. Jon Jones attended PFL 5 inside the Overtime Elite Arena in Atlanta, GA. He was serving as a cornerman when he ran into Francis Ngannou. “Bones” and “The Predator” had a staredown and while there was some gamesmanship, the two were cordial.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 21, 2023

UFC Featherweight Champion Alexander Volkanovski believes he’ll get the better of Islam Makhachev in a rematch. Earlier this year, Alexander Volkanovski challenged Islam Makhachev for the UFC Lightweight Championship. It was a highly competitive title fight that went the distance. Ultimately, Makhachev was awarded the close, but unanimous decision victory to maintain his hold on the 155-pound gold.

Harry Kettle - June 21, 2023

UFC flyweight champion Brandon Moreno has given his thoughts on Henry Cejudo’s recent loss to Aljamain Sterling at UFC 288. The rumor mill is currently suggesting that Henry Cejudo will return to action to battle Marlon Vera later this summer. In doing so, he’ll attempt to vault himself back into contention in the UFC’s bantamweight title picture.

Harry Kettle - June 21, 2023

UFC fighter Michael Chandler has vented his frustration as Conor McGregor continues to miss out on being enrolled in the USADA testing pool. For the majority of the year thus far, it’s seemed as if Michael Chandler and Conor McGregor would be squaring off in the Octagon. As time has gone on, however, more and more doubts have been creeping in regarding the Irishman’s availability.

Harry Kettle - June 21, 2023

UFC star Conor McGregor has shared photos of him sparring with Dillon Danis as speculation over his future continues. Right now, Conor McGregor has bigger things on his plate than fighting as a result of the recent accusations against him. With that being said, a lot of fans are still curious to see whether or not he’ll be competing against Michael Chandler – as was rumored to be the case.

Cole Shelton - June 20, 2023

Randy Brown took a chance and fought Jack Della Maddalena back in February and it didn’t go his way. Della Maddalena was someone not many people were eager to fight, but Brown is always up for the challenge, so he took the offer to fight him. Unfortunately, he suffered a first-round stoppage loss, and right away, he was asking the UFC to get him another fight.

Cole Shelton - June 20, 2023

Shane Burgos knows his PFL 6 fight against Yamato Nishikawa is do-or-die for his season. Burgos left the UFC last year and proceeded to sign with PFL, competing at lightweight as part of their tournament format. Unfortunately, in his debut, ‘Hurricane’ suffered a decision loss to Olivier Aubin-Mercier. The setback was disappointing, but Burgos is just glad he gets to fight again so soon.

Cole Shelton - June 20, 2023

Kelvin Gastelum is ready to fight Shavkat Rakhmonov next time out. After Gastelum announced he would be making the move to welterweight, Rakhmonov quickly called him out on social media. Although Gastelum did not immediately respond as he was on vacation, the TUF 17 winner has said he wants that fight and hopes it can happen on the Mexican Independence card on September 16.

Cole Shelton - June 20, 2023

Sean O’Malley thinks Cory Sandhagen fighting Umar Nurmagomdov is a gangster move but isn’t a smart one. Sandhagen is set to headline UFC Nashville against Nurmagomedov in a crucial fight for the bantamweight division. It is Nurmagomedov’s first chance to fight a ranked opponent and he gets the fourth-ranked bantamweight in Sandhagen. With that, O’Malley says Sandhagen taking the fight is not smart as he isn’t following Chael Sonnen’s main rule of fighting.

Josh Evanoff - June 20, 2023

Former UFC heavyweight champion Mark Coleman is set to face Montell Griffin in October. ‘The Hammer’ is one of the more beloved figures from the early days of the promotion. He famously started 6-0 in his professional career, winning the UFC heavyweight title with a submission win over Dan Severn in 1997. That was arguably the biggest win of Mark Coleman’s career, but it was far from the last.

Josh Evanoff - June 20, 2023

Francis Ngannou seemingly doesn’t care for the UFC’s attempt to make Jon Jones vs. Tyson Fury. Over the last few weeks ‘Bones’ and ‘The Gypsy King’ have been going back and forth. While the boxer first only showed interest in competing in the boxing ring, he’s changed his tune a little bit. In recent days, Tyson Fury has shown interest in facing Jon Jones in a potential two-fight deal.

Josh Evanoff - June 20, 2023

Former UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway has opened as a massive favorite against The Korean Zombie. ‘Blessed’ has been out of the cage since his clash with Arnold Allen at UFC Kansas City in April. The two headlined the event, as the ‘Almighty’ entered on a lengthy winning streak. However, that momentum was halted earlier this year, as Max Holloway won by unanimous decision.

Cole Shelton - June 20, 2023

Jessica Andrade will be making the walk to the Octagon for the fourth time in 2023. The UFC announced in a press release on Tuesday that Andrade will face Tatiana Suarez at UFC Nashville at strawweight. Originally, Suarez was supposed to fight Virna Jandiroba, but the Brazilian has suffered an injury and will be replaced by the former champ in Andrade. The main event of UFC Nashville sees Cory Sandhagen taking on Umar Nurmagomedov.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 20, 2023

If Jake Paul is to be believed, then his boxing match with Nate Diaz has now been bumped up to 10 rounds. Much has been made about the eight rounds that had been scheduled for Paul vs. Diaz. The Stockton native expressed his belief that there should be more rounds in the fight. Jake Paul agreed, and has taken to his Twitter account to claim the bout with Nate Diaz is now 10 rounds.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 20, 2023

We now know the outcome of several PFL fighters who were flagged due to failed drug tests. Back in May, the Nevada State Athletic Commission revealed a slew of fighters who competed in the first set of PFL 2023 regular season bouts popped. At the time, some fighters received sanctions, while others were still be to determined. The punishments for those fighters have been finalized and publicly revealed.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 20, 2023

Charles Oliveira’s team certainly isn’t lacking confidence. Charles Oliveira pulled off a scintillating first-round TKO finish over Beneil Dariush at UFC 289 earlier this month. This was a pivotal bout in the lightweight division. The quick finish for “do Bronx” may have earned him a rematch against Islam Makhachev. Back in October 2022, Makhachev took the previously vacant UFC Lightweight Championship via second-round submission over Oliveira.

Cole Shelton - June 20, 2023

The 127th episode of Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com with host Cole Shelton is live ahead of 2023 PFL 6 and UFC Jacksonville aka UFC on ABC 5. We’re first joined by former UFC featherweight and current PFL lightweight Shane Burgos (1:38). Next, UFC welterweight Randy Brown (13:42) comes on. Closing out the program is UFC strawweight Gillian Robertson (28:26).