MMA News

Josh Evanoff - May 23, 2023

UFC welterweight contender Shavkat Rakhmonov would love to welcome Kelvin Gastelum back to the division. The former middleweight title challenger is fresh off his return last month at UFC 287. In that outing, Gastelum earned a badly needed unanimous decision victory over Chris Curtis. For their performances, the two received the ‘Performance of the Night’ award. Weeks following the victory, he announced his plans to drop back down to the welterweight division.

Josh Evanoff - May 23, 2023

UFC middleweight contender Khamzat Chimaev has responded to Kamaru Usman. ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ has been out of the cage since his decision loss to Leon Edwards in March. That bout was his second straight loss to ‘Rocky’, and took the Nigerian out of the title picture for the time being. As such, Usman decided to make a spirited callout earlier this month.

Cole Shelton - May 23, 2023

Nate Diaz claims Khabib Nurmagomedov avoided a rematch with Conor McGregor. Nurmagomedov and McGregor fought in the main event of UFC 229. It was the Irishman’s return to MMA after boxing Floyd Mayweather, while Khabib was looking to defend his 155lbs title for the first time. The build-up was full of trash talk and in the fight, it was Nurmagomedov who won by fourth-round submission.

Lewis Simpson - May 23, 2023

UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski has zero desire in a potential fourth fight with Max Holloway. The history between arguably the two greatest featherweights in UFC history dates back to 2019, when Volkanovski first attained the title at UFC 254, snapping Holloway’s fourteen-fight unbeaten streak at 145lbs. Since then, the pair have met a further twice, with the Australian edging a split decision at UFC 251 and then putting on a clinic at UFC 276 to go (3-0) over the former champ.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 23, 2023

Belal Muhammad thinks there’s a little bit of desperation from Colby Covington. “Chaos” Covington is expected to challenge Leon Edwards for the UFC Welterweight Championship at some point this year. Many have criticized the UFC for giving Covington the next title opportunity at 170 pounds, but Dana White has insisted that Muhammad will get the winner of Edwards vs. Covington.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 23, 2023

Former UFC fighter Alessio Di Chirico has reportedly found himself in hot water with the law. Al Zullino reports that Di Chirico was recently arrested in Formentera, Spain. The former UFC middleweight allegedly attacked a taxi driver.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 23, 2023

Ben Rothwell has entered the Francis Ngannou sweepstakes. Ngannou made some waves in the MMA world after he parted ways with the UFC while he was the promotion’s heavyweight champion. Five months after his UFC exit, “The Predator” signed with the PFL. With the deal, Ngannou’s first opponent under the PFL banner is expected to earn $2 million.

Harry Kettle - May 23, 2023

Henry Cejudo has questioned where PFL is getting its funding from following their recent deal with Francis Ngannou. The recent acquisition of Francis Ngannou was huge news for PFL. They’ve been making steady gains for a while now, but bringing in a name like Francis was a real statement of intent. They made it known that they aren’t here to mess around, offering ‘The Predator’ an incredibly lucrative deal.

Harry Kettle - May 23, 2023

UFC champion Israel Adesanya has given his thoughts on the controversial decision in the Devin Haney vs Vasiliy Lomachenko fight. Last weekend, Devin Haney defended his undisputed lightweight crown against Vasiliy Lomachenko. While Haney was able to come away with his hand raised, many felt as if Lomachenko had done enough to regain the belts.

Harry Kettle - May 23, 2023

Dricus du Plessis has doubled down on his previous comments about Israel Adesanya as their war of words continues. Later this summer, Dricus du Plessis will collide with Robert Whittaker in a title eliminator showdown. The winner is expected to battle Israel Adesanya for the UFC middleweight championship, perhaps as early as September. While Whittaker is seen as the clear favorite, there are plenty of reasons to believe that the South African star could make this incredibly competitive.

Cole Shelton - May 22, 2023

In the main event of UFC Vegas 73, top-15 strawweights headlined the card as Mackenzie Dern took on Angela Hill. Dern entered the fight coming off a majority decision loss to Xiaonan Yan back in October in another five-round main event. Hill, meanwhile, was riding a two-fight winning streak as she beat Loopy Godinez and Emily Ducote by decision.

Cole Shelton - May 22, 2023

Dustin Poirier believes Conor McGregor will finish Michael Chandler inside two rounds if they end up fighting. McGregor and Chandler are coaching TUF and are expected to fight later this year in a highly-anticipated fight. The Irishman is looking to snap his two-fight losing skid after losing back-to-back fights to Dustin Poirier, while Chandler is also coming off a loss to Poirier.

Josh Evanoff - May 22, 2023

UFC middleweight Dricus Du Plessis knows that fighting Robert Whittaker isn’t the best idea. ‘Stillknocks’ has been out of the cage since his clash against Derek Brunson in March. In that outing, Du Plessis survived an early swarm to win by second-round stoppage. The victory was the South African’s seventh victory in a row, previously defeating names such as Darren Till in that stretch.

Josh Evanoff - May 22, 2023

UFC bantamweight contender Sean O’Malley has responded to Aljamain Sterling. ‘Sugar’ and ‘The Funk Master’ have been in a war of words since UFC 288. In the main event earlier this month, Sterling scored a split-decision win over Henry Cejudo to retain the bantamweight gold. In the process, he set the record for most title defenses in the division’s history with three.

Josh Evanoff - May 22, 2023

UFC lightweight contender Dustin Poirier is expecting another war with Justin Gaethje. ‘The Diamond’ is slated to face ‘The Highlight’ in the main event of UFC 291 in July. Furthermore, the two will battle for the promotion’s ceremonial ‘BMF’ championship. The title was last put on the line in 2019 when Jorge Masvidal defeated Nate Diaz at UFC 244 to claim the gold.

Josh Evanoff - May 22, 2023

Former UFC bantamweight champion Henry Cejudo has given a glimpse into Jon Jones’ future. ‘Bones’ returned to the octagon in March, headlining UFC 285 against Ciryl Gane. The bout was Jones’ first in over three years, but he didn’t take long to shake off the ring rust. He wound up submitting ‘Bon Gamin’ in round one, securing the vacant UFC heavyweight championship in the process.

Lewis Simpson - May 22, 2023

Eddie Hearn has weighed in and dropped his official prediction for the Summer showdown between Jake Paul and Nate Diaz. Earlier this month, it was announced that Jake Paul would compete against his fourth MMA fighter inside the boxing ring. Paul will face off with UFC veteran Diaz on August 5 in Dallas, Texas, with the hope of bouncing back from his first professional loss to Tommy Fury.

Lewis Simpson - May 22, 2023

Paulie Malignaggi thinks Jake Paul would knockout Conor McGregor if the pair ever met between the ropes. Paul is scheduled to face his fourth MMA fighter in boxing since debuting in 2020. The Youtuber-turned boxer will face UFC veteran Nate Diaz on August 5 in Dallas, Texas, but has been vocal in expressing his desire to fight McGregor.