MMA News

Drake Riggs - October 20, 2021

RIZIN bantamweight champion Kyoji Horiguchi is set to attempt to reclaim the title he never lost. Bellator announced on Wednesday that their newest Bellator 135-pound champion in Sergio Pettis has his next challenger. Pettis will defend against the RIZIN titlist in Horiguchi on Dec. 3 at Bellator 272 in Uncasville, Connecticut.

Drake Riggs - October 20, 2021

Kyra Batara may be small in stature, but she isn’t afraid of the “American Gangster” Chael Sonnen. Standing tall at just 4-foot-11, “Mogwai” recently recalled the time she ran into former UFC middleweight and light heavyweight challenger Chael Sonnen – only to try and take down the great wrestler himself.

Cole Shelton - October 20, 2021

Paulo Costa has made it known he won’t be making weight for his UFC Vegas 41 middleweight main event. At media day on Thursday, Marvin Vettori revealed the Brazilian came into fight week heavy and has been asking to change the weight. When Costa had his turn at media day, he confirmed it and said his manager has been in contact with Ali Abdelaziz to try and make it a catchweight.

Cole Shelton - October 20, 2021

Jake Paul and Tommy Fury will box one another before the year is up in Tampa Bay. According to British outlet and newspaper, The Sun, Paul and Fury have been agreed to for December 18. The fight was made official on Friday with the fight taking place in Tampa Bay, Florida. both men have been campaigning for the fight since they boxed on the same card in August.

Adam D Martin - October 20, 2021

It appears there is some last-minute drama as Marvin Vettori is claiming that Paulo Costa is overweight for their UFC Vegas 41 main event. According to Vettori, who spoke to reporters at media day ahead of Saturday’s UFC Vegas 41 event, he is hearing that Costa is having trouble making the 185lbs weight limit ahead of their main event this weekend. As far as “The Italian Dream” goes, he has no problem, fighting Costa up at 205lbs if he can’t make middleweight. He just wants to fight him.

Adam D Martin - October 20, 2021

Bellator MMA fighter Dillon Danis claimed that former UFC champion Tyron Woodley was contractually not allowed to KO Jake Paul in boxing. Woodley and Paul met in a professional boxing match at the end of August in Paul’s backyard of Cleveland, Ohio. It was a competitive fight that went the full eight contracted rounds, but at the end of the fight, it was Paul who was awarded a split decision. Most people who watched agreed that Paul did enough work to win enough rounds on points to earn the decision, but it is also fair to say that Woodley had some of the biggest moments of the fight. Namely early on in the contest when he knocked Paul into the ropes.

Cole Shelton - October 20, 2021

Ricky Glenn wanted to be active this year after having hip surgery that kept him out of action from November 2018 until June of 2021 when he made his return. In his return fight, Glenn moved up to lightweight and scored a 37-second KO win over Joaquim Silva. After the fight, he thought he would get a quick turnaround, but nothing came up until he saw Diego Ferreira pulled out of his fight with Grant Dawson and Glenn jumped at the opportunity to face him at UFC Vegas 41.

Adam D Martin - October 20, 2021

MMA legend and current Bellator heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko blasted UFC president Dana White, saying “he has no respect towards fighters.” Emelianenko is one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time, having fought for many of the top fight promotions in the sport’s history. The Russian currently stars for Bellator MMA, where this weekend he fights UFC veteran Tim Johnson in a heavyweight bout that headlines Bellator 269. There is a chance that this could be the final fight of Emelianenko’s incredible MMA career, and if it’s the case, then he would do so without having fought for the UFC. It’s arguably the biggest “what if” story in mixed martial arts history as Emelianenko was never able to prove his heavyweight greatness at the UFC level.

Cole Shelton - October 20, 2021

In the main event of UFC Vegas 41, top-five middleweights collide as Paulo Costa battles Marvin Vettori. Heading into the fight, Vettori is a -150 favorite with the comeback on the Brazilian at +125. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The majority of pros believe Vettori will be able to use his wrestling to grind out a win over Costa.

Adam D Martin - October 20, 2021

UFC middleweight contender Sean Strickland credited “white trash f*ck” Conor McGregor for reaching the “pinnacle of success” in MMA. McGregor got into another incident this past weekend after allegedly punching and breaking the nose of Italian DJ Francesco Facchinetti. It is far from the first time that McGregor has gotten into trouble with the law, and it likely won’t be the last. When speaking to host Michael Bisping on the “Believe You Me” podcast, Strickland was asked his thoughts on the whole situation with McGregor. As far as Strickland goes, McGregor is everything that a successful MMA fighter could be, but he is still a “white trash f*ck.”

Adam D Martin - October 20, 2021

UFC bantamweight contender Sean O’Malley took a shot at former champion Dominick Cruz, telling him that “you need to learn from the daddy.” O’Malley is set to return at UFC 269 on December 11 when he takes on Raulian Paiva in a bantamweight bout set for the main pay-per-view card. On the prelims of the same event, Cruz fights Pedro Munhoz in another important fight at 135lbs. Both O’Malley and Cruz were connected to a fight against each other, but ultimately the UFC decided to go in another direction for both men. However, that hasn’t stopped Cruz from saying that O’Malley declined to fight him. As far as O’Malley goes, that simply is not the case.

Adam D Martin - October 20, 2021

UFC middleweight contender Marvin Vettori blasted “crazy” Paulo Costa for drinking a bottle of wine before his Israel Adesanya fight. Costa fought Adesanya for the UFC middleweight title last October at UFC 253 and he suffered a second-round knockout loss for his troubles. Following the fight, Costa revealed that he was hungover in the Octagon after having drunk a bottle of wine the night before the fight. According to Costa, he had problems sleeping so he drank the bottle in order to help him fall asleep. While Costa eventually did fall asleep, being hungover in the fight clearly was not a good idea as he ended up looking listless and suffered a knockout defeat.

Harry Kettle - October 20, 2021

UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has revealed that he sent a DM to rival Paulo Costa after their battle at UFC 253. While he may have had a blip up at light heavyweight, there’s nobody better than Israel Adesanya at 185 pounds – or at least, that’s how it seems. In his second bout of 2020 he went toe to toe with long-time foe Paulo Costa and in one of the most dominant displays of the year, he successfully retained his belt against the Brazilian.

Drake Riggs - October 19, 2021

Despite the strawweight division being loaded with contenders, Zhang Weili will get an instant rematch with new champion Rose Namajunas. First colliding with Namajunas at UFC 261 in April, Zhang (21-2) attempted to defend her 115-pound UFC crown for just the second time – her first coming over the legendary Joanna Jedrzejczyk in March 2020. Unfortunately for China’s first promotional titleholder, “Magnum” fell to a quick head kick knockout in only 78 seconds.

Cole Shelton - October 19, 2021

Fedor Emelianenko is set for his return fight in Russia as he will headline Bellator 269 against Tim Johnson. When Bellator announced Emelianenko would be fighting at home for the final time, many thought he would face a legend. The likes of Junior dos Santos, Alistair Overeem, Fabricio Werdum, and Josh Barnett all expressed interest but in the end, Emelianenko picked Johnson. According to the Russian, he says it was an obvious choice to face Johnson.

Cole Shelton - October 19, 2021

Paddy Pimblett doesn’t see a reason to fight anyone ranked on his current contract. Pimblett made his UFC debut back in September and scored a first-round KO over Luigi Vendramini. It was a highlight-reel finish and after the fight, many wondered what would be next for him, with some thinking he would get a ranked opponent, but Pimblett says that will not be the case.

Cole Shelton - October 19, 2021

The UFC informed international fighters that they will not be allowed into the United States unless they are fully vaccinated starting November 8. The Las Vegas-based promotion sent out a memo on Tuesday to fighters and their teams which was sent by UFC Chief Business Officer Hunter Campbell. MMAJunkie was able to obtain the memo which showed the UFC telling fighters that the United States have changed their vaccination rules and anyone arriving in the country must be vaccinated.

Adam D Martin - October 19, 2021

Former UFC middleweight champion and current color commentator Michael Bisping analyzed UFC 269’s Leon Edwards vs. Jorge Masvidal fight. Edwards returns later this year at UFC 269 when he takes on Masvidal in a three-round welterweight bout. According to Edwards, the UFC has told him that if he wins the fight, he will be given the next title shot at 170lbs. Speaking on his YouTube channel, one of Edwards’ fellow Brits in Bisping broke down the fight with Masvidal. As far as Bisping goes, this is a very difficult fight to predict, but he does think Edwards holds several advantages.