MMA News
Daniel Cormier explains why it remains “hard to call” Jon Jones the greatest of all time: “Especially with the drugs and the steroid failures”
Lewis Simpson - March 8, 2023
In the eyes of many, Jon Jones cemented himself as the greatest mixed martial artist of all time following his UFC 285 heavyweight title win over Ciryl Gane. However, Daniel Cormier, a longtime rival of Jones, struggles to agree, given his troubled past.
UFC champion Jamahal Hill has no plans of lobbying for better fighter pay like Francis Ngannou: “I’m just building bridges”
Harry Kettle - March 8, 2023
Jamahal Hill has said that fighters will have to “come together” if they want to improve the pay structure in the UFC. For the longest time now, there’s been a lot of talk regarding fighter pay in the UFC. Some have defended it, but the majority of fans and pundits believe that those on the UFC roster deserve more than what they’re getting.
Henry Cejudo advises Bo Nickal to take “six more fights” before fighting anyone in the top ten
Harry Kettle - March 8, 2023
Henry Cejudo has advised Bo Nickal to take his time before taking on the truly elite middleweights in the UFC. While he may be just 4-0 in mixed martial arts, Bo Nickal is already quite the phenomenon. The former wrestling sensation has made a seamless transition over to MMA and in his UFC debut last weekend, he finished Jamie Pickett in the first round.
Jon Jones opens up as significant favorite for UFC 290 showdown with Stipe Miocic
Harry Kettle - March 8, 2023
Jon Jones has opened as a sizeable favourite ahead of his proposed fight against Stipe Miocic at UFC 290. Ever since his win over Ciryl Gane at UFC 285, Jon Jones has been focused on one man – Stipe Miocic. In his post-fight interview, he made it crystal clear that he wants to take on the man who is widely regarded as the greatest UFC heavyweight of all time.
Mario Bautista "surprised" to be fighting Guido Cannetti, vows to finish him and prove he belongs "at the top"
Cole Shelton - March 7, 2023
Mario Bautista was surprised when he was offered to face Guido Cannetti on March 11 at UFC Las Vegas. Bautista extended his current win streak to three last time out with a first-round submission win over Benito Lopez. After the win, he thought he could get someone ranked but was offered Cannetti which was surprising.
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.
Aljamain Sterling believes Jon Jones could fall into similar pitfall Daniel Cormier had in title reign: "You gotta keep that same energy"
Josh Evanoff - March 7, 2023
UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling believes Jon Jones should keep the same energy. ‘Bones’ returned to the octagon over the weekend in the main event of UFC 285. The return ended a three-year layoff for the former champion, as he hadn’t competed since a controversial decision win over Dominick Reyes in 2020. Upon his return last Saturday, Jones wasted no time returning to his winning ways.
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).
Sean Strickland slams Paulo Costa for his performance against Luke Rockhold: “He doesn’t even qualify as a training partner for me”
Christopher Taylor - March 6, 2023
Sean Strickland gave a harsh assessment of former UFC champion Luke Rockhold during his most recent exchange with Paulo Costa. Strickland and Costa have been going back and forth on Twitter about a potential showdown in the Octagon.
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.
What's next for the stars of UFC 285?
Cole Shelton - March 6, 2023
The UFC returned to the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday for UFC 285 which saw the heavyweight and women’s flyweight titles up for grabs. In the main event, Jon Jones was ending his three-year-long layoff and making his heavyweight debut against Ciryl Gane for the vacant title. The co-main event saw Valentina Shevchenko defending her flyweight strap against Alexa Grasso.
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.