MMA News
Michael 'Venom' Page blasts UFC over treatment of Francis Ngannou: "Heavyweight champion of the world and you're complaining about finances"
Josh Evanoff - March 7, 2023
Bellator welterweight Michael ‘Venom’ Page believes Francis Ngannou‘s UFC exit is concerning for MMA fighters. ‘The Predator’ famously walked out of the UFC in January after fighting out his contract. He vacated his heavyweight title, and the promotion quickly announced Jon Jones vs. Ciryl Gane for the gold. ‘Bones’ defeated ‘Bon Gamin’ by first-round submission at UFC 285 last weekend to win the vacant championship.
Merab Dvalishvili discusses previous run-in with Petr Yan in Abu Dhabi: "He should be more humble"
Josh Evanoff - March 7, 2023
UFC bantamweight contender Merab Dvalishvili seemingly has bad blood with Petr Yan. ‘The Machine’ has been out of the octagon since his clash with Jose Aldo last August at UFC 278. Heading into the contest, the Brazilian was hoping to earn one final title shot, but those plans were blown up. Dvalishvili wound up winning by unanimous decision, the biggest victory of his career to date.
Davey Grant eyes KO win over Raphael Assuncao at UFC Las Vegas to earn a spot in the rankings: "I'm here for exciting fights"
Cole Shelton - March 7, 2023
Davey Grant thought he would’ve been fighting a lot sooner. After Grant scored a third-round KO win over Louis Smolka last May, he thought he would get at least another two fights in 2022. Yet, for whatever reason, Grant did not get another fight offer until he was called to step in on short notice against Raphael Assuncao at UFC Las Vegas.
Chael Sonnen reveals jaw-dropping largest career fight purse: "The numbers are bigger than people think they are"
Josh Evanoff - March 7, 2023
According to Chael Sonnen himself, ‘The Bad Guy’ made a lot of money fighting Anderson Silva. The two middleweights clashed in the main event of UFC 117 in August 2010. Despite ‘The Spider’ being a massive favorite to defend his middleweight title, Sonnen came out firing and kept up the pressure. The wrestler dominated the first four rounds, and the champion needed a hail-mary finish.
Dan Hooker expects the UFC will punish him for the accusations he made against Islam Makhachev
Lewis Simpson - March 7, 2023
Dan Hooker expects to be punished after his allegations towards lightweight champion Islam Makhachev at UFC 284. Last month in Perth, Australia, Makhachev made the first defence of his lightweight championship in front of a hostile crowd. After being pushed by featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovsk for five rounds, the Dagestani was made to work for the victory.
Stephen Thompson responds after Shavkat Rakhmonov taunts him with “who’s grappler now?” comment on Twitter
Lewis Simpson - March 7, 2023
Stephen Thompson has responded after Shavkat Rakhmonov taunts him following his UFC 285 victory over Geoff Neal. At the tail-end of 2022, Thompson found his way back into the win column after a back-and-forth brawl with Kevin Holland.
Just Scrap Radio Ep. 113 with Davey Grant, Mario Bautista, Jonathan Martinez, Tyson Nam, Austin Lingo
Cole Shelton - March 7, 2023
The 113th episode of Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com with host Cole Shelton is live ahead of UFC Las Vegas. We’re first joined by UFC bantamweight Davey Grant (1:48). Next, UFC bantamweight Mario Bautista (14:27) stops by. UFC bantamweight Jonathan Martinez (28:09) then comes on. UFC flyweight Tyson Nam (35:24) stops by. Closing out the program is UFC featherweight Austin Lingo (50:24).
Watch Israel Adesanya’s live reaction to Jon Jones finishing Ciryl Gane at UFC 285: “F**k that’s impressive”
Harry Kettle - March 7, 2023
Israel Adesanya has released footage of him reacting to Jon Jones’ impressive win over Ciryl Gane at UFC 285. Last Saturday night, Jon Jones demolished Ciryl Gane in their UFC 285 main event. It took just over two minutes for ‘Bones’ to lock in a choke and become the new UFC heavyweight champion.
Daniel Cormier shares the two biggest regrets from his UFC career: "People still make fun of me"
Christopher Taylor - March 6, 2023
Former champ-champ Daniel Cormier has shared the two biggest regrets from his storied career with the UFC. Cormier (22-3 MMA) retired from the sport in 2020 following his second straight defeat at the hands of Stipe Miocic. Now almost three years removed from that setback, ‘DC’ admits that he wishes he would have hung up his gloves a bit sooner.
Jon Jones says he's "not going to compete" if he isn't allowed to tape his toes: "Hopefully the proper people hear me and I don’t run into the issue again”
Cole Shelton - March 6, 2023
Jon Jones had made it clear that he isn’t going to fight again if he isn’t allowed to tape his toes. As Jones was about to enter the Octagon at UFC 285, the commission stopped him and made him cut some tape off his foot, as he had his toe taped. It is something Jones has done ever since the Chael Sonnen fight so he was disappointed to have to cut part of the tape off.
Daniel Cormier shocked Valentina Shevchenko has been "making consistent mistakes" in her past two title fights
Cole Shelton - March 6, 2023
Daniel Cormier is surprised that Valentina Shevchenko has been making plenty of mistakes in her past two title fights. In the co-main event of UFC 285, Shevchenko suffered a fourth-round submission loss to Alexa Grasso to lose her flyweight title. It was a massive upset, and in the fight, Shevchenko tried a spinning kick that resulted in her giving up her back and then geting submitted.
Francis Ngannou praises Jon Jones for his "great performance" at UFC 285, expresses disappointment that a fight with 'Bones' will likely "never happen now"
Jeffrey Walter - March 6, 2023
Francis Ngannou has praised Jon Jones for his great performance at UFC 285 but is admittedly disappointed that they will never fight. Jones (27-1 MMA) captured the UFC’s vacant heavyweight title this past Saturday night in Las Vegas, submitting former interim title holder Ciryl Gane (11-2 MMA) in the very first round (see that here).
Cody Garbrandt declares passion for MMA is back after making successful return at UFC 285: "It's what I was born to do"
Josh Evanoff - March 6, 2023
Former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt has found his passion for MMA again. ‘No Love’ has had a rough last few years. After defeating Dominick Cruz at UFC 207 in December 2017, it seemed that Garbrandt was on his way to superstardom. Instead, he lost the title to T.J. Dillashaw in his next outing, and went 1-5 after his championship win.
Stipe Miocic states there's "zero question" he will defeat Jon Jones in return: "Sucks that he's going to lose"
Josh Evanoff - March 6, 2023
Former UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic is confident ahead of his return. The former champion has been out of the cage for nearly two years. Miocic’s last bout came against Francis Ngannou in another defense of his heavyweight throne. However, ‘The Predator’ wound up winning by second-round knockout, taking the title in the process.
Demetrious Johnson believes Jon Jones could've defeated Ciryl Gane without weight change: "He could've done that weighing 205!"
Josh Evanoff - March 6, 2023
Former UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson wasn’t shocked by Jon Jones‘ successful return. ‘Bones’ made his long-awaited return to the octagon in the main event of UFC 285 over the weekend. While his return was long in the making, so was his move to heavyweight. On Saturday night, Jones competed in the weight class for the first time, facing Ciryl Gane.
Chael Sonnen claims Ciryl Gane was 'scared to death' in UFC 285 headliner with Jon Jones
Lewis Simpson - March 6, 2023
Chael Sonnen claims Ciryl Gane was scared in his UFC 285 title fight with Jon Jones. On Saturday, Jones transitioned to heavyweight after a three-year layoff to challenge Ciryl Gane for the UFC vacant heavyweight title. Fans witnessed the opposite in what many believed would be a closely contested matchup. Jones submitted Gane in the opening round relatively easily and cemented his legacy as the greatest mixed martial artist on the planet.
Daniel Cormier critical of Jon Jones' mauling of Ciryl Gane at UFC 285: "Tad bit slower, his movements aren’t as quick and dynamic"
Lewis Simpson - March 6, 2023
Despite easily dispatching of Ciryl Gane to attain the UFC world heavyweight championship at UFC 285, Daniel Cormier wasn’t all impressed with his former foe Jon Jones. On Saturday past, Jones became the UFC heavyweight champion in his first attempt after moving up to the division. Jones submitted Gane in the first round without breaking a sweat.
Michael Chandler plans to “slice through” Conor McGregor in their upcoming UFC fight: “Bludgeon him with both of these hands”
Harry Kettle - March 6, 2023
UFC fighter Michael Chandler has issued a warning to Conor McGregor ahead of their showdown later this year. Right now, Michael Chandler and Conor McGregor are busy filming the latest season of The Ultimate Fighter. As noted by Dana White, things have gotten pretty heated in recent days and weeks.