MMA News

Cole Shelton - April 13, 2021

Ben Askren jumped at the opportunity to box YouTuber, Jake Paul. After Paul knocked out Nate Robinson on the Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. undercard, he called out several MMA fighters including Askren. Although “Funky” just had hip surgery and isn’t known as a striker, the former ONE Championship and Bellator champion knew this was a good opportunity to make a ton of money and beat up someone who he claims, isn’t a good fighter.

Adam D Martin - April 13, 2021

UFC superstar Conor McGregor slammed rival Dustin Poirier, saying that “you will pay with your brain for this attempt at smearing my name.” This week, Poirier tweeted that Team McGregor never sent “The Good Fight Foundation” the $500,000 charitable donation it promised it would send following their fight at UFC 257. What was bizarre about the whole situation was McGregor’s team said in January that the money was in the process of being sent. That money was not sent, however, and McGregor later took to his social media to explain that he wanted to know where the money was going before he sent it. Poirier later said that McGregor was ghosting his emails and that they never responded to Poirier when he tried to explain where the money would go.

Cole Shelton - April 13, 2021

The 35th episode of Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN with Cole Shelton is here ahead of Jake Paul vs. Ben Askren and UFC Vegas 24. We’re first joined by former UFC welterweight and now a professional boxer, Ben Askren (3:16). Next, former UFC heavyweight champ and pro boxer, Frank Mir (15:02) comes on. UFC lightweight, Drakkar Klose (33:23) joins the show. Closing out the program is UFC heavyweight, Chase Sherman (44:59).

Adam D Martin - April 13, 2021

Former UFC flyweight Jimmy Flick explained what led to him walking away from the UFC, suggesting that “fighters are too stupid to unionize.” Flick (16-5) announced over the weekend that he is walking away from mixed martial arts and the UFC at age 30. The announcement came as a complete shock for his fans, as Flick was set to fight Francisco Figueiredo in May, this coming off the heels of an incredible UFC debut in December where he submitted Cody Durden with a flying triangle choke. Overall, Flick had won four straight fights and with a win over Figueiredo, he likely would have fought a top-15 opponent next. Instead, the flyweight has decided to hang up his gloves.

Adam D Martin - April 13, 2021

UFC welterweight contender Khamzat Chimaev is targeting a return to the Octagon in the late summer, according to his manager, Ali Abdelaziz. Chimaev was supposed to fight Leon Edwards in March in what would have been a potential No. 1 contender fight at 170lbs. However, Chimaev was forced to withdraw from the fight due to a bad experience with COVID-19, one that left him coughing up blood and thinking he had cancer. Fortunately, it appears as though Chimaev is now finally getting healthy. While he originally said that he was going to walk away from the sport, he has said in recent weeks that he has his motivation back and he is excited to fight again soon.

Adam D Martin - April 13, 2021

UFC bantamweight contender Marlon Vera claims that he accepted a rematch with Sean O’Malley but his rival didn’t want to take the fight. Vera and O’Malley met last summer at UFC 252. O’Malley came into the fight with an unbeaten record, but early on in the first round, he suffered an ankle injury that caused him to lose his footing and fall to the mat, where Vera finished him with strikes. Since then, O’Malley has returned to the cage with a brilliant TKO win over Thomas Almeida, while Vera lost a unanimous decision to Jose Aldo in his last outing. With Vera and O’Malley battling it out for the No. 15 ranking in the UFC bantamweight division, a rematch makes sense.

Harry Kettle - April 13, 2021

Mike Perry has laughed off the idea that Darren Till genuinely wanted to provide him with MMA training and accommodation in England. Last weekend, Perry fell to a unanimous decision defeat against Daniel Rodriguez that dropped his recent record to 3-7. It was his fourth loss in his last five fights and while there are many people who believe he still has what it takes to be an elite MMA star, others feel as if now is the time for the UFC to cut their ties with him.

Drake Riggs - April 12, 2021

Top strawweight contender Mackenzie Dern picked up the biggest victory of her career against Nina Nunes at UFC Vegas 24. Now, she’s ready to go all the way to the top. With three big wins in 2020, Dern extended her winning streak to a strong four in a row, the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt now envisions fighting for gold at the end of 2021.

Cole Shelton - April 12, 2021

Dustin Poirier was just as surprised as the rest of us when Conor McGregor announced their UFC 264 fight is off. After Poirier went to social media to say McGregor never donated the $500k to his charity as promised, the Irishman went on a rampage on Twitter. After taking some shots at “The Diamond” he claimed their trilogy fight on July 10 was off, and Poirier sent a clever video McGregor’s way in a reply on Twitter.

Cole Shelton - April 12, 2021

Tony Ferguson went nearly a decade without losing and then in 2020, “El Cucuy” went 0-2, but he believes those losses were the best thing to ever happen to him. Ferguson first fought Justin Gaethje for the interim lightweight title in May, which served as the first event back for the UFC from the pandemic. Unfortunately, Ferguson suffered a fifth-round TKO loss. El Cucuy then took a short notice fight against Charles Oliveira at UFC 256 and lost a clear-cut decision in a fight he was dominated in.

Cole Shelton - April 12, 2021

Kevin Lee is hoping Conor McGregor is serious that he won’t be fighting Dustin Poirier on July 10. After Poirier took to social media to say the Irishman never donated the $500k to his charity as he promised, McGregor responded with his reasoning. Conor said that he needed to know where the money would be going, and after a couple more tweets from Poirier, “Notorious” said he will no longer be fighting Poirier at UFC 264 on July 10.

Cole Shelton - April 12, 2021

Jake Paul is confident he will finish Ben Askren within two rounds in their boxing match on Saturday night. Paul, the brash YouTuber, is set for his third professional bout against Askren in Atlanta, Georgia which is a fascinating fight.

Adam D Martin - April 12, 2021

UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou praised referee Herb Dean for his stoppage in the Stipe Miocic rematch that took place at UFC 260. Ngannou knocked Miocic down in the second round with a powerful punch that saw the former champ fall to the canvas in a scary fashion as his leg was bent backward. Thankfully, Dean was able to rush in and stop the fight, but not after Ngannou landed a huge hammer fist on his downed opponent that knocked him out cold. Some fans were critical of Dean as they believed that he way late in stopping the fight, but as far as Ngannou goes — the man who knows better than anyone — Dean did a good job.

Cole Shelton - April 12, 2021

Audie Attar, the manager of Conor McGregor, has blasted Dustin Poirier for going public about McGregor not donating to the Good Fight Foundation. Ahead of McGregor and Poirier’s rematch at UFC 257, the Irishman confirmed he would be donating $500k to Poirier’s charity. However, on Sunday night, “The Diamond” revealed on social media that McGregor never donated. Yet, for the Irishman, he claims he never heard of where the money would be going.

Adam D Martin - April 12, 2021

UFC lightweight Michael Chandler revealed his ambitious plan of fighting Charles Oliveira at UFC 262 and then Conor McGregor at UFC 264. Chandler is currently set to take on Oliveira for the vacant UFC lightweight title in the main event of UFC 262 on May 15. Chandler recently said in an interview that, assuming a win over “Do Bronx,” he wants to fight McGregor by the year’s end. However, with McGregor now suggesting that his fight against Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 could be off due to Poirier bringing to the public eye McGregor’s non-donation to his charity “The Good Fight Foundation,” it’s possible that this fight could be in jeopardy. McGregor himself said as much on Twitter say, suggesting that he will be looking at other options for UFC 264.

Cole Shelton - April 12, 2021

Julia Budd believes she can earn a rematch with Cris Cyborg if she beats Dayana Silva at Bellator 257. On Friday night, Budd will welcome the Contender Series veteran to Bellator in an interesting fight. The Canadian is set for her second fight since losing her belt to Cyborg and thought about holding out for a title shot but is eager to fight again.

Adam D Martin - April 12, 2021

UFC women’s strawweight standout Mackenzie Dern has issued a statement following her submission win over Nina Nunes at UFC Vegas 23. Dern was facing the toughest test of her career to date in the form of Nunes when she fought her at this past Saturday’s UFC Vegas 23. Though Dern was the betting underdog heading into the fight, she showed the odds were completely wrong as she was able to quickly get the fight to the ground and grab the arm of Nunes and finish her by submission. With the win, Dern improved to 11-1 overall in MMA including a 6-1 record in the Octagon.

Adam D Martin - April 12, 2021

Former UFC fighter-turned-boxer Ben Askren has revealed what his walkout robe will look like this Saturday for the Jake Paul boxing match. Askren makes the walk to the boxing ring for the first time this weekend when he takes on Paul in the main event of a blockbuster pay-per-view event promoted by Triller. For Askren, he’s guaranteed a seven-figure payday to take on Paul, who in his last fight for Triller brutally knocked out former NBA player Nate Robinson. Askren vs. Paul promises to be one of the biggest boxing matches of the year based on name value alone, and lots of eyes will be on them. So of course, the fighters want to look good during their walkout.