MMA News

Cole Shelton - September 23, 2021

Alexander Volkanovski truly doesn’t like Brian Ortega. Volkanovski was supposed to fight Ortega in March but he tested positive for COVID-19 and the fight was delayed. Once the fight was delayed, the two ended up coaching The Ultimate Fighter and throughout the season, Volkanovski began to dislike Ortega. At the press conference ahead of their main event fight at UFC 266, the two took shots at one another. Yet, during their faceoff, it was Volkanovski who brought up Ortega’s past as the American tested positive for steroids in his UFC debut.

Cole Shelton - September 23, 2021

Israel Adesanya has given up on his dream of headlining a UFC card in New Zealand. Adesanya called for his next title defense to happen in Auckland as he wanted to fight at home. Yet, as the country continues to lock down to the pandemic, which includes shutting down gyms like City Kickboxing and making it hard for fighters like Dan Hooker to fight, “The Last Stylebender” has no interest in fighting at home. Instead, he says the ‘bureaucrats’ can make their money elsewhere.

Adam D Martin - September 23, 2021

UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman responded after Nick Diaz suggested that he would “beat the sh*t” out of him in a recent interview. Diaz recently sat down in an interview with ESPN and said that he believes that he should actually be fighting Usman next, not Robbie Lawler, who he fights in a rematch at UFC 266. As far as Diaz goes, this rematch with Lawler is pointless since he already has a previous win over his rival. As far as Diaz goes, he believes that he should be the one fighting Usman next, not Colby Covington. Taking to his social media to respond to what Diaz recently said, Usman reacted to what Diaz said, indicating he’s ready to fight Diaz as well.

Adam D Martin - September 23, 2021

UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski ripped “unprofessional” opponent Brian Ortega ahead of their title fight at UFC 266. Volkanovski puts his 145lbs belt on the line this Saturday night when he faces his TUF 29 coaching rival Ortega for featherweight supremacy. Volkanovski enters this fight on a 19-fight win streak, which includes a perfect 9-0 mark in the UFC alone, while Ortega enters this fight with a 7-1, 1 NC record in the Octagon. Fans are very much looking forward to this fight, one that pits two of the best featherweights on the planet against one another, not to mention two men that do not necessarily like each other.

Cole Shelton - September 23, 2021

Martin Sano Jr. is eager to finally make the walk to the Octagon. Sano Jr., a protégé of Nick Diaz, has not fought since 2017 and is 0-2-1 in his last three fights. However, he still is 4-2-1 as a pro and has fought for promotions likes Bellator and WSOF, but when Diaz was announced to make his return, he got his pupil in Sano Jr. signed to the UFC and to fight Matthew Semeslberger at UFC 266.

Adam D Martin - September 23, 2021

Former UFC featherweight champion and current bantamweight title contender Jose Aldo welcomed new challengers, saying to them “Let’s fight!” Aldo last fought at UFC 265 in August when he won a unanimous decision over fellow Brazilian Pedro Munhoz. It was Aldo’s second straight win at 135lbs following a decision nod over Marlon Vera last year. Following the win over Munhoz, Aldo used his post-fight interview as an opportunity to call out former bantamweight champ TJ Dillashaw. However, it appears as if Dillashaw is banged up and likely won’t be able to fight before the end of the year. If it’s Aldo’s goal to step back into the cage before 2021 is up, then he will likely have to fight someone else instead, and that’s why he is now welcoming new challengers.

Cole Shelton - September 23, 2021

On the main card of UFC 266, Nick Diaz is set to make his highly-anticipated return as he rematches Robbie Lawler in a middleweight bout. Diaz is a +120 underdog while the former UFC welterweight champ is a -140 favorite. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The pros are nearly unanimous in thinking Robbie Lawler wins due to activity but the pros admit this is a tough one to call.

Adam D Martin - September 23, 2021

YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul shared the DMs he sent to Bellator fighter Dillon Danis while issuing a final warning to rival Tommy Fury. Paul took to his social media on Wednesday to release a two-minute clip of him talking about both Danis and Fury. Check out what “The Problem Child” said in the video below.

Adam D Martin - September 23, 2021

The Bellator 266 fighter salaries have been officially released to the public, and light heavyweight Yoel Romero banked the largest payday. MMAjunkie.com was the first to report the salaries for Bellator 266 after obtaining the information from the California State Athletic Commission. The highest-paid fighter on the card was Romero, who took home $150,000 flat for his split decision loss to Phil Davis in the main event of Bellator 266. Despite the fact that Davis was the one who won the fight, he received only $100,000 for the victory. That’s because Bellator has a flat pay system for many of its top fighters and not the traditional show and win bonuses for them. So in the case of Romero and Davis, they would have been guaranteed those purses win or lose.

Harry Kettle - September 23, 2021

UFC featherweight Brian Ortega has explained how TJ Dillashaw’s big comeback win over Cory Sandhagen has helped him heading into UFC 266. This Saturday night, Ortega will return to the Octagon for the first time in almost a year to take on Alexander Volkanovski for the UFC featherweight championship. It’ll serve as his second bite at the cherry to win the strap, almost three years on from when he fell short against Max Holloway.

Harry Kettle - September 23, 2021

Richard Schaefer has revealed that Jon Jones is hoping to hit 275 lbs as he continues to prepare for his heavyweight debut. While some fans may be getting impatient, there’s no way of denying just how much hype there is behind Jon Jones finally making the shift up to heavyweight. He’s been out of the Octagon for over 18 months now and all that seems to be left is for the two parties to come to terms on the right sum for a UFC title showdown.

Christopher Taylor - September 22, 2021

Nick Diaz says he “took harder punches watching” his little brother fight Leon Edwards at UFC 263 than he ever has in sparring or any fights. Diaz will make his highly anticipated return to the Octagon on Saturday when he squares off in a rematch with Robbie Lawler at UFC 266. The pair originally collided seventeen years ago in a welterweight bout at UFC 47, with the Stockton native emerging victorious by way of second round knockout.

Christopher Taylor - September 22, 2021

Nick Diaz will make his highly anticipated return to the Octagon on Saturday when he squares off in a rematch with Robbie Lawler at UFC 266. The pair originally collided seventeen years ago in a welterweight bout at UFC 47, with the Stockton native emerging victorious by way of second round knockout. This time around Diaz and Lawler will compete at middleweight, a decision that was made earlier this week.

Christopher Taylor - September 22, 2021

New footage has surfaced of Bellator fighter Dillon Danis being choked by security prior to his arrest in New Jersey. On Monday afternoon a video surfaced on social media (see that here) showing ‘El Jefe’ struggling with police officers before eventually being handcuffed and taken into custody.

Cole Shelton - September 22, 2021

Robbie Lawler not only expects to beat Nick Diaz but expects to finish him. In a five-round middleweight bout on the main card of UFC 266, Diaz is set to return to the Octagon for the first time since 2015 when he rematches Lawler. The two first met in 2004 with Diaz winning the fight by KO but this time, the former UFC welterweight champion is confident he will KO Diaz this time around.

Cole Shelton - September 22, 2021

Robbie Lawler didn’t seem to mad that Nick Diaz asked for their UFC 266 fight to be at middleweight. Diaz is set to return to the Octagon in a highly-anticipated rematch against Lawler. Although both men are known for their time as welterweights, on Tuesday, it was revealed their fight was changed to a middleweight fight due to Diaz asking for it. For Lawler, he says he’s a little light but he’s ready to fight.

Adam D Martin - September 22, 2021

Pound-for-pound boxing great Canelo Alvarez shared his honest thoughts on YouTuber Jake Paul, suggesting that “maybe it’s good for boxing.” Alvarez is the top P4P boxer on the planet right now, and he next steps into the boxing ring when he fights the unbeaten Caleb Plant on November 6. Ahead of the fight, Alvarez and Plant took part in the pre-fight press conference. Following the presser, Alvarez spoke to reporters and he was asked questions on a number of topics, including the YouTuber Paul.

Cole Shelton - September 22, 2021

In the co-main event of UFC 266, Valentina Shevchenko is looking to defend her flyweight belt as she faces Lauren Murphy. Ahead of the fight, the champ is a massive -1250 favorite while the challenger is a +750 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. To no surprise, the pros are unanimous in thinking Shevchenko remains the flyweight champ, the bigger question for the pros was whether or not the champ finishes the fight.