MMA News
Mike Jackson still just fighting for "shits and giggles", but confident he'll KO Pete Rodriguez at UFC Vegas 62: "Everyone knows I'm coming for the knockout"
Cole Shelton - October 13, 2022
Mike Jackson will be returning to the Octagon on Saturday for the second time in 2022. Jackson fought Dean Barry in April, and he won by DQ due to Barry eye-gouging him. After the win, Jackson was unsure when he would fight again but will make a relatively quick turnaround as he’s set to face Pete Rodriguez at UFC Vegas 62.
Henry Cejudo explains why Alex Volkanovski is making a “mistake” by taking on backup fighter role for UFC 280 main event
Ryan Harkness - October 13, 2022
Alexander Volkanovski recently revealed that he will be the official back-up for UFC 280’s lightweight title bout between Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira. Should either fighter be unable to compete in Abu Dhabi come October 22nd, the featherweight champ will step up to lightweight and compete for a second title. Speaking as a former double champ himself, Henry Cejudo thinks that’s a bad idea. He’s convinced it’s such a mistake that he’s made an eight minute video detailing all the reasons why Volkanovski is shooting himself in the foot with the move.
Khabib Nurmagomedov names the three UFC fights he's bothered to wake up and watch this year
Ryan Harkness - October 13, 2022
Khabib Nurmagomedov is enjoying life as a retired former UFC champion, and mainly puts his combat sports energy towards coaching and training with his stable of Dagestani fighters. According to ‘The Eagle,’ he no longer watches a whole lot of mixed martial arts. That’s partly because UFC events regularly air at five AM in his country, and party because he no longer has the same passion he once did. “Maybe it’s because the flame inside of me went out, but I think there’s been a dip in MMA,” he said in a recent forty minute interview with UFC Russia. “That’s what I think, I can be wrong. Everyone has their viewpoint. I think the flame went out a little, that there was a decline. There will always be stars, UFC’s PR machine is strong. Say what you will but they created a powerful machine in the last 30 years. They’ll ignite the flame. But I don’t wake up early to watch fights any more.”
Da Un Jung vs. Devin Clark targeted for February Fight Night card in Korea
Cole Shelton - October 13, 2022
The UFC will be heading to Korea in February and local fighter Da Un Jung will be on the card. Multiple sources informed BJPENN.com that Jung will face Devin Clark on February 4, with the event likely taking place in Seoul, South Korea. The location has not been finalized as of yet but is trending in the right direction, while the bout is also only verbally agreed to. It will be the first time the UFC is in Korea since UFC Busan in December of 2019 which saw Korean Zombie vs. Frankie Edgar in the main event.
Marlon Vera discusses Sean O’Malley’s chances in upcoming fight with Petr Yan: “You also have to be realistic”
Harry Kettle - October 13, 2022
Marlon Vera has given his thoughts on Sean O’Malley’s chances against Petr Yan in their grudge match at UFC 280. Next Saturday night in Abu Dhabi, Sean O’Malley will get the chance to register the biggest win of his mixed martial arts career thus far when he meets former UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan at UFC 280.
TJ Dillashaw believes Aljamain Sterling is trying “to play mental warfare” with continuous PED accusations: “It ain’t gonna work with me”
Harry Kettle - October 13, 2022
TJ Dillashaw believes Aljamain Sterling is trying to play mental warfare with him ahead of their UFC 280 title fight. After getting back to winning ways against Cory Sandhagen last year following his two-year suspension from mixed martial arts, TJ Dillashaw will now get the chance to become a three-time UFC bantamweight champion when he goes head to head with current king of the mountain Aljamain Sterling next weekend.
Daniel Cormier believes Kevin Holland’s upcoming fight with 'Wonderboy' is payback: “I think you've got to be very careful with using the word retirement”
Harry Kettle - October 13, 2022
Daniel Cormier has given his thoughts on the UFC booking Kevin Holland against Stephen Thompson on December 3. In the wake of his loss to Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 279, Kevin Holland appeared to be toying with the idea of retirement – or, at the very least, he was all too happy to wind the fans up about the prospect.
Sean O'Malley says he's "surprised" Petr Yan took the fight against him at UFC 280
Cole Shelton - October 12, 2022
Sean O’Malley didn’t think the Petr Yan fight would actually happen. After O’Malley had a No Contest due to an accidental eye poke against Pedro Munhoz at UFC 276, it was uncertain what was going to be next for him. That fight was ‘Suga’s’ opportunity to face a top-10 opponent but it never ended with a win or a loss.
Charles Oliveira says he's "always ready" to fight Khabib Nurmagomedov but doubts 'The Eagle' competes again: "He said he’s retired, he’s done"
Cole Shelton - October 12, 2022
Charles Oliveira would love to share the Octagon with Khabib Nurmagomedov but doubts it will happen. After Nurmagomedov submitted Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 to defend his lightweight belt, he announced his retirement from the sport. Yet, many thought he would come back but he still hasn’t and seems set on his retirement.
Alexa Grasso believes impressive win over Viviane Araujo at UFC Vegas 62 could earn a title shot: "I think the champion is going to look at the one who does the best"
Josh Evanoff - October 12, 2022
UFC women’s flyweight contender Alexa Grasso believes she’s on the verge of a title shot. The Mexican fighter has been out of action since her clash with Joanne Wood in March. In that outing, Grasso scored a first-round submission win, moving her win streak to three. She had previously captured victories over Ji Yeon Kim and Maycee Barber.
WWE star Matt Riddle reflects on wrestling victories over Jon Jones: "He’s always been a top-tier competitor"
Josh Evanoff - October 12, 2022
Matt Riddle has shared his stories about wrestling former UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones. These days, the Las Vegas native stars on WWE Raw as a high-flying athletic wrestler. Riddle has taken so well to the world of professional wrestling that many fans might not know that he used to be a fighter. In fact, he was a very good one.
Aspen Ladd announces clash with Julia Budd for PFL debut on November 25th: "It's a fighter's dream to fight in Madison Square Garden"
Josh Evanoff - October 12, 2022
PFL featherweight Aspen Ladd is now set for her promotional debut. The 29-year-old has been out of action since her loss to Raquel Pennington in April. That bout wound up being the last in the promotion for Ladd. Following that, she had two failed bookings with former title challenger Sara McMann.
Khabib Nurmagomedov claims Tony Ferguson is only "fighting for money," urges him to retire because his "time is up"
Cole Shelton - October 12, 2022
Khabib Nurmagomedov has doubled down on thinking Tony Ferguson’s time is up. Nurmagomedov and Ferguson were longtime rivals that never had the chance to share the Octagon with one another. The two were booked multiple times but it never came to fruition due to injuries, botched weight cuts, freak injuries, and even a pandemic.
Jonathan Martinez "surprised" Cub Swanson is dropping down down to bantamweight but honored to welcome him to the division: "It should be a good fight"
Cole Shelton - October 12, 2022
Jonathan Martinez is pumped to be welcoming Cub Swanson to the bantamweight division at UFC Vegas 62. After Martinez picked up his third win in a row, he wasn’t sure what would be next for him, but did want a legend like Frankie Edgar. Although he didn’t get the Edgar fight he did get another legend as he will face Swanson on Saturday.
Brandon Royval says it's "hard to watch video" on Askar Askarov due to his style, confident he'll finish him to set up UFC 283 rematch with Alexandre Pantoja
Cole Shelton - October 12, 2022
Brandon Royval isn’t a fan of Askar Askarov and his style. Royval has taken shots at Askarov in the past saying the Russian is boring and all he does is hold people up against the fence and win decisions. After the comments, the UFC booked Royval vs. Askarov at UFC Vegas 62 which is a fight he thought would happen.
Khabib Nurmagomedov confident that Islam Makhachev is “more skilled” than Charles Oliveira: “Islam should roll over him”
Susan Cox - October 12, 2022
Khabib Nurmagomedov is confident that Islam Makhachev is ‘more skilled’ than Charles Oliveira. It will be Charles Oliveira (33-8 MMA) vs Islam Makhachev (22-1 MMA) on Saturday, October 22nd at UFC 280 which takes place at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Tim Welch says Sean O'Malley could make Petr Yan look 'Stupid'
Andrew Whitelaw - October 12, 2022
Sean O’Malley is a near impossible puzzle to solve according to his coach Tim Welch. ‘Suga Sean’ will head into the biggest fight of his career at UFC 280 against Petr Yan. #12-ranked O’Malley sits 10 places behind the Russian at bantamweight and has never beaten anyone inside the top-10.
Aljamain Sterling trashes USADA for failing to catch T.J. Dillashaw: "I thought they tested for everything"
Ryan Harkness - October 12, 2022
Aljamain Sterling is set to defend his bantamweight title against T.J. Dillashaw at UFC 280 on October 22nd. And while both men are extensively tested by USADA under a program designed to weed out performance enhancing drug users, Sterling believes Dillashaw is still cheating. Dillashaw was famously stripped of his 135 pound title after testing positive for EPO, an erythropoiesis-stimulating agent that increases the amount of red blood cells in your body, improving stamina and performance. T.J. was suspended for two years over his EPO use, but Aljamain Sterling recently pointed out it wasn’t USADA that caught him.