MMA News
Don Shainis knows he can't leave it up to the judges against local fighter Jack Jenkins at UFC 284: "I know deep down if it is a close decision it probably isn't going my way"
Cole Shelton - February 9, 2023
Don Shainis knows he has to finish Jack Jenkins at UFC 284 if he is going to win. Shainis made his UFC debut last October on short notice and was submitted in 30 seconds against Sodiq Yusuff. Although the fight didn’t go his way, he already had his eye on Jenkins as he watched the Contender Series live the week of his fight and saw Jenkins get a win.
Calvin Kattar reveals torn ACL is expected to hold him out of action until 2024: "I just want to make sure I’m 100 percent"
Josh Evanoff - February 9, 2023
UFC featherweight contender Calvin Kattar will be out of action for a while. ‘The Boston Finisher’ has been out of the octagon since his clash with Arnold Allen last October. That bout was a bit of a must-win for Kattar, as he was still gunning for a title shot after losing to Josh Emmett that summer. Instead, disaster struck for the featherweight.
Alexander Volkanovski's coach believes Islam Makhachev is only "good at holding people down," says Ortega is more dangerous
Cole Shelton - February 9, 2023
Alexander Volkanovski’s grappling coach Craig Jones believes Brian Ortega is more dangerous on the ground than Islam Makhachev will be. Volkanovski defended his featherweight strap back in September of 2021 against Ortega in a fight he had to get out of multiple submission attempts. With that, Jones has confidence that Volkanovski will be able to handle Makhachev on the ground.
VIDEO | Mark Zuckerberg spars with Alexander Volkanovski in Meta ad ahead of UFC 284
Josh Evanoff - February 9, 2023
Ahead of UFC 284, Mark Zuckerberg has sent a sign of support to Alexander Volkanovski. ‘The Great’ has been out of action since his trilogy bout with Max Holloway last July. In that outing, Volkanovski dominated en route to a lopsided unanimous decision victory. In the process, he closed the book on his series with ‘Blessed’, winning all three fights.
Islam Makhachev hits back at Bobby Green over steroids accusation: "I training hard, that’s why. That’s why he feel the power"
Josh Evanoff - February 9, 2023
UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev has hit back at Bobby Green‘s steroid accusations. The Russian is slated to headline UFC 284 this Saturday night against Alexander Volkanovski. The bout will be Makhachev’s first title defense since winning the title last October against Charles Oliveira. ‘Do Bronx’ wound up losing by second-round submission, ending his historic winning streak.
Islam Makhachev says he's "the best MMA fighter" in the world, despite Alexander Volkanovski being atop pound-for-pound rankings
Cole Shelton - February 9, 2023
Islam Makhachev isn’t sold on Alexander Volkanovski being the best fighter in the UFC. Volkanovski – who’s the current featherweight champion – is ranked number one on the UFC’s official pound-for-pound rankings. However, Makhachev who is defending his lightweight title in the main event of UFC 284 against Volkanovski believes he is the best fighter in the world and will prove that on Saturday.
Josh Emmett explains why he views upcoming title fight with Yair Rodriguez as a number one contenders bout: “There’s only one featherweight champion”
Susan Cox - February 9, 2023
Josh Emmett is explaining why he views the upcoming title fight with Yair Rodriguez as a number one contenders bout. It will be UFC 284 this coming weekend, Saturday February 11th at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia.
UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev confirms his intentions of eventually competing at welterweight: “It's gonna happen one day”
Susan Cox - February 9, 2023
UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev is confirming his intentions of eventually competing at welterweight. The reigning lightweight champion is set to defend his title this coming Saturday, February 11th at UFC 284 which takes place at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia.
Dan Hooker requests Dana White allow him to compete on upcoming Power Slap pay-per-view: “Show/win and I’m in”
Susan Cox - February 9, 2023
Dan Hooker is requesting Dana White allow him to compete on the upcoming Power Slap pay-per-view. ‘Power Slap’ premiered on Wednesday, January 18th on TBS to a viewing audience of approximately 295,000.
UFC 284 | Pro fighters make their picks for Yair Rodriguez vs. Josh Emmett interim title fight
Cole Shelton - February 9, 2023
In the co-main event of UFC 284, Yair Rodriguez is set to take on Josh Emmett for the interim featherweight title. Heading into the fight, Rodriguez is a -196 favorite while the American is a +152 underdog on FanDuel. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. The pros lean towards Rodriguez getting it done, likely by decision to become the interim featherweight champ.
Josh Emmett hits back at fans critical of his upcoming title opportunity at UFC 284: “It’s just because they cannot do it”
Harry Kettle - February 9, 2023
Josh Emmett has hit back at fans for criticising his interim title fight against Yair Rodriguez at UFC 284 this weekend. In the co-main event of the evening, Josh Emmett and Yair Rodriguez will battle it out over the UFC interim featherweight championship. In doing so, they will set up the next challenger for Alexander Volkanovski.
Islam Makhachev believes Michael Chandler will retire following his fight with Conor McGregor: “This fight is last fight for him”
Harry Kettle - February 9, 2023
Islam Makhachev has predicted that Michael Chandler will leave the UFC following his fight with Conor McGregor later this year. After months of waiting, the return of Conor McGregor was finally announced last week. The Irishman will be back in action later on in 2023, facing Michael Chandler, after the two coach opposite one another on The Ultimate Fighter.
Dana White announces fans will be able to bet on Power Slap matches starting at the live event in March
Harry Kettle - February 9, 2023
Dana White has announced that starting in March, fans will be able to bet on events and fights from the Power Slap league. While it may be pulling in big numbers, Power Slap is still a source of great controversy in the world of combat sports. UFC president Dana White continues to push ahead with it, giving the show the kind of promotion that a lot of UFC events can only dream of.
Robert Whittaker reacts to callout from Khamzat Chimaev: “Oh yeah, cool – let’s do it”
Cole Shelton - February 8, 2023
Robert Whittaker has responded to Khamzat Chimaev. Chimaev has recently come out and said he wants to fight Whittaker in his return to middleweight. He believes it would be a fun fight for the fans where the winner would also get the next title shot, and now Whittaker has responded and is open to making it happen.
Parker Porter plans to "bite down" on his mouthpiece and "start throwing leather" with Justin Tafa at UFC 284: "I think we are getting a good finish in the first round"
Cole Shelton - February 8, 2023
Parker Porter plans to stand and trade with Justin Tafa. Porter is set to return to the Octagon at UFC 284 as he goes into enemy territory against Tafa on the pay-per-view portion of the card. On paper, it could be a fun fight and that is what Porter is expecting as he believes he and Tafa are going to bite down on their mouthpieces and trade leather.
Dana White says Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler will be at lightweight, uncertain if winner gets a title shot
Cole Shelton - February 8, 2023
Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler won’t be fighting at welterweight after all. It was recently announced that McGregor and Chandler will coach TUF and will fight later this year. It was then reported the fight would be at welterweight, with even Chandler saying that will be the case, but now White says it will be at lightweight.
Dan Hooker out of UFC 285 fight against Jalin Turner due to a broken hand
Cole Shelton - February 8, 2023
Dan Hooker will not be fighting at UFC 285. Hooker was set to return on March 4 in Las Vegas at UFC 285 against Jalin Turner in a very fan-friendly scrap. However, on Wednesday, MMAFighting reported that Hooker has suffered a broken hand and is out of his fight. The hope is to keep Turner on the card and have a replacement opponent found.
Max Holloway vs. Arnold Allen officially announced for UFC Kansas City on April 15th
Josh Evanoff - February 8, 2023
Featherweight contenders will be headlining the UFC’s return to Kansas City, Missouri. Last month, there were reports that Max Holloway would face Arnold Allen next. ‘Blessed’ has been out of the cage since his trilogy bout with Alexander Volkanovski last July. In the co-main event at UFC 276, ‘The Great’ dominated en route to a lopsided decision victory.