MMA News
Dana White on Khabib Nurmagomedov comeback: "I’m a little confident that I can talk him into it"
Tom Taylor - December 17, 2020
UFC President Dana White is feeling confident that he can convince UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov to fight again. Nurmagomedov retired in November, after he submitted Justin Gaethje in the main event of UFC 254 in Abu Dhabi. After the fight, the unbeaten Russian shocked the MMA world by announcing his retirement from mixed martial arts, citing the recent death of his father and mentor Abdulmanap and a promise to his mother as the reasons.
Mike Perry reveals his Christmas wish: a fight with Nate Diaz
Harry Kettle - December 17, 2020
UFC fighter Mike Perry wants to test himself in a big way for his next fight by squaring off against Nate Diaz. Perry, who is coming off the back of a defeat to Tim Means, has been a source of great debate amongst MMA fans for a long time now. Some enjoy his antics and are always excited to see him fight, whereas others are disturbed by his actions outside the cage.
Eddie Grant and Sam Hughes respond to Daniel Cormier’s “hurtful” comments from UFC 256
Harry Kettle - December 17, 2020
UFC fighter Sam Hughes and her coach Eddie Grant have responded to Daniel Cormier’s comments from UFC 256. On Saturday night, Hughes lost to Tecia Torres as a result of a doctor stoppage courtesy of an eye injury. It turns out that she wound up being diagnosed with hyphema, or pooling of blood inside the eye, and the UFC’s ophthalmologist said that her iris was 80% filled with blood.
Full betting odds for UFC Vegas 17: Thompson vs. Neal
Adam Martin - December 17, 2020
The full betting odds have been released for the 14 fights scheduled to take place at Saturday’s UFC Vegas 17: Thompson vs. Neal. The main event sees former UFC welterweight title challenger Stephen Thompson take on surging contender Geoff Neal. Thompson last fought at UFC 244 in November 2019, taking home “Fight of the Night” in his unanimous decision win over Vicente Luque. As for Neal, he is 5-0 in the UFC and is coming off of a head kick TKO win over Mike Perry at UFC 245. However, Neal has not been able to fight so far this year due to some health issues.
Oddsmakers largely favor Conor McGregor in potential Jake Paul boxing match
Drake Riggs - December 16, 2020
If the world ends up getting to see the fantasy boxing matchup between former UFC champion Conor McGregor and YouTube star Jake Paul, the odds lean heavily toward the Irishman. After an entirely one-sided war of words between McGregor and Paul, those words coming from the latter, oddsmakers have now revealed the betting numbers for several possibilities. Unsurprisingly, each category supports the MMA veteran. (via MyBookie.ag)
Kevin Holland has an interesting motive for wanting to beat up Derek Brunson
Drake Riggs - December 16, 2020
At UFC 256, middleweight contender Kevin Holland scored his biggest win yet. Now he’s expressed his interest in beating up Derek Brunson… but not for any reason you might assume. Throughout Holland’s still young career, he’s become somewhat of a knockout artist with 11 of his 21 victories coming via that finishing variation. By watching him in action, one can undeniably see he’s a striking showman.
Jake Paul lashes out at former UFC champion Chris Weidman for his recent comments
Cole Shelton - December 16, 2020
Jake Paul has fired back at Chris Weidman. Ever since Paul knocked out Nate Robinson on the Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. undercard he has become a massive star. The YouTuber has since been aggressively calling out Conor McGregor and Dillon Danis. Fighters like Nate Diaz and Amanda Nunes have since called him out and Weidman is the latest fighter to be added to the list.
Anthony Johnson reveals the one fight that got away during his time in the UFC
Adam Martin - December 16, 2020
Following his exit from the UFC, former light heavyweight title challenger Anthony Johnson revealed the one fight that got away from him. Johnson recently left the UFC to sign a free-agent contract with Bellator. Considering his last fight took place in 2017, it was surprising to see Johnson announce his comeback with Bellator seemingly out of nowhere. UFC president Dana White recently said that he would let Johnson explain why he left the promotion, and he did just that in an interview with ESPN on Wednesday. He also was asked if he had any regrets about his time with the UFC.
Anthony Johnson shares his thoughts on a potential scrap with Yoel Romero
Cole Shelton - December 16, 2020
Anthony Johnson isn’t sure where Yoel Romero got his information from that it is 90 percent likely they will fight one another in their debuts. Both Johnson and Romero parted ways with the UFC and signed with Bellator this month and both men will fight at light heavyweight. Immediately, fans called for them to fight one another and even Romero said it is likely. “Rumble,” however, hasn’t heard any of that talk but is open to the fight.
Rob Font expects to put the bantamweight division on notice with a KO win over Marlon Moraes
Cole Shelton - December 16, 2020
Rob Font didn’t expect to be fighting Marlon Moraes in his return fight. Font is on a two-fight winning streak but has not fought since last December when he defeated Ricky Simon by decision. Rob has been sidelined with injuries but at UFC Vegas 17 he will return to the Octagon against Moraes.
Anthony Johnson explains his exit from the UFC and why he signed with Bellator
Cole Shelton - December 16, 2020
Anthony Johnson has explained why he parted ways with the UFC and signed with Bellator. For over a year, “Rumble” has talked about returning to the sport and many figured it would be with the UFC. But, as he was about to return in 2021, it was revealed he and the UFC mutually agreed to part ways and he says that is all it is. He also makes it clear he has no ill-will towards the Las Vegas-based promotion.
Marlon Vera expects to KO Jose Aldo and "let the division know I’m going to be a world champion"
Cole Shelton - December 16, 2020
Marlon Vera is expecting to get into a slugfest on Saturday night. In the co-main event of UFC Vegas 17, Vera is set to battle Jose Aldo in a fight that was supposed to happen at both UFC 255 and 256. However, due to visa issues, the fight was delayed but for “Chito” he is just glad the fight got made.
Israel Adesanya will get light heavyweight title shot before Glover Teixeira, confirms Dana White
Adam Martin - December 16, 2020
UFC president Dana White confirmed that Israel Adesanya will get the next light heavyweight title shot before Glover Teixeira does. Adesanya knocked out Paulo Costa in the main event of UFC 253 in September to defend the UFC middleweight title, and in the co-main event of that card, Jan Blachowicz knocked out Dominick Reyes to win the vacant UFC light heavyweight title. Following UFC 253, White surprised a lot of fans and media when he said the promotion liked the idea of seeing Adesanya move up to 205lbs to take on Blachowicz in a bid to become a double champion.
Alexander Volkanovski vs. Brian Ortega targeted for February, says Dana White
Adam Martin - December 16, 2020
The upcoming match between UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski and Brian Ortega is being targeted for February, says Dana White. Volkanovski is coming off of a controversial split decision win over Max Holloway back at UFC 251 in July on Fight Island, which was his 19th straight win overall. The UFC thought about booking a trilogy fight with Holloway after two close decisions, but after Ortega shut out The Korean Zombie on the scorecards in October, “T-City” stole the title shot back. White previously confirmed that Ortega was the new No. 1 contender for the belt but until now we didn’t have a date for the bout. We now have a better idea of when it will happen.
Team Rose Namajunas refutes Dana White’s claim that she does not want a title shot vs. Weili Zhang
Adam Martin - December 16, 2020
Team Rose Namajunas has refuted UFC president Dana White’s claims that she does not want a title shot against strawweight champ Weili Zhang. After beating Jessica Andrade by split decision at UFC 251 in a “Fight of the Night” performance on Fight Island this past summer, White said that Namajunas was next in line to fight Zhang. Very recently we heard that the UFC was close to figuring out a date for this bout, but it appears that it might not happen now. On Wednesday, White made comments to BT suggesting that Namajunas isn’t interested in a title shot against Zhang and that the promotion is considering giving the next title shot to former champ Carla Esparza instead.
Diego Sanchez targeting "OG fight" after recent battles with "real killers"
Tom Taylor - December 16, 2020
UFC legend Diego Sanchez is planning on retiring after his next fight, and he has a few opponents in mind for that final walk to the Octagon. After taking on rising prospects like Michel Pereira and Jake Matthews, Sanchez, who won the very first season of The Ultimate Fighter, is hoping to close out his career by battling somebody of his vintage, like one of the Diaz brothers or Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone.
Curtis Blaydes reveals Derrick Lewis bout is likely to be rescheduled for February 20
Adam Martin - December 16, 2020
UFC heavyweight Curtis Blaydes has revealed the targeted date for the rebooked UFC heavyweight fight against rival Derrick Lewis. Blaydes and Lewis were set to headline the UFC Vegas 15 card on November 28, but the fight fell apart at the last minute after Blaydes tested positive for COVID-19. The original plan from the UFC was to rebook the match after Blaydes did his two-week quarantine and recovered, but the UFC was not able to make it happen before the end of 2020. Instead, the promotion is now targeting the fight to take place in early 2021. The problem is, the UFC still wants it as a main event fight and there are not many dates available right now.
Jake Paul slides into Conor McGregor's DMs: "Take the fight p*ssy"
Tom Taylor - December 16, 2020
Jake Paul is not giving up on his desired fight with former two-division UFC champ Conor McGregor, and has now boldly slid into the Irishman’s DMs. After scoring a brutal knockout win over former NBA star Nate Robinson at the recent Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. even, Paul has been ceaselessly campaigning for a fight with McGregor.