MMA News

Fernando Quiles Jr. - July 22, 2025

Robert Whittaker knows the stakes of his middleweight bout against Reinier de Ridder on Saturday. Many fans were pleasantly surprised when Whittaker vs. de Ridder was first announced. While de Ridder is the No. 12-ranked UFC middleweight, many believe his accomplishments in ONE Championship along with his performance against Bo Nickal warranted top five competition.

Harry Kettle - July 22, 2025

UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov has given his thoughts on the future of Jon Jones ahead of his potential comeback. As we know, Jon Jones is technically retired from the sport of mixed martial arts. He made the decision a few weeks back, declining to defend his UFC heavyweight championship against interim champion Tom Aspinall. As a result of that, Tom has been promoted to the position of undisputed champion.

Harry Kettle - July 22, 2025

UFC legend Max Holloway has questioned Ilia Topuria for carrying around the BMF title belt as talks of a rematch continue. Last Saturday night, Max Holloway successfully retained the BMF championship by defeating Dustin Poirier at UFC 318. As we know, though, ‘Blessed’ lost his last fight before this, falling to a KO defeat at the hands of Ilia Topuria. While the BMF title wasn’t on the line in that fight, some felt as if it should’ve been.

Harry Kettle - July 22, 2025

UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall has given his thoughts on Alex Pereira potentially moving up to his division. As we know, Tom Aspinall is the new king of the heavyweight division following the retirement of Jon Jones. What we don’t know, though, is who he’s going to face in his next fight. There are a handful of potential contenders in the mix but one that stands out as being pretty intriguing is none other than Alex Pereira.

Cole Shelton - July 22, 2025

The 200th episode of Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com with host Cole Shelton is live to preview UFC Abu Dhabi on Saturday. We’re first joined by 13th-ranked UFC bantamweight Marcus McGhee (1:09). We close things out by chatting with UFC bantamweight (14:04).

BJPENN.COM Staff - July 21, 2025

Kang Ji Won enters his heavyweight battle against Ryugo Takeuchi with supreme confidence. The South Korean knockout artist has maintained a perfect finishing rate and aims to keep that streak alive. The South Korean faces Takeuchi at ONE Fight Night 34: Eersel vs. Jarvis on Prime Video on Friday, August 1, inside Lumpinee Stadium at Bangkok, Thailand. The bout features two heavy-handed fighters looking to make their mark.

BJPENN.COM Staff - July 21, 2025

Shamil Gasanov believes his village upbringing forged the mentality needed to capture MMA gold. The Russian is ready to prove a wrestler from remote Dagestan can achieve worldwide greatness. The third-ranked featherweight rematches Garry Tonon at ONE Fight Night 34 on Friday, August 1, inside Lumpinee Stadium at Bangkok, Thailand. The bout comes after Gasanov defeated Martin Nguyen, marking his fourth consecutive victory since Tonon submitted him.

Cole Shelton - July 21, 2025

Khamzat Chimaev has fired back at Paulo Costa. After Costa pulled off an upset win over Roman Kopylov, he called out Chimaev and claimed ‘Borz’ was DMing his wife. He says he will be chasing down Chimaev until he gets to fight him, but after his callout, ‘Borz’ took to social media to claim Costa’s wife was the one messaging him.

Cole Shelton - July 21, 2025

Reinier de Ridder is expecting to make a statement in the main event of UFC Abu Dhabi on Saturday. de Ridder is set to headline the card against former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker in a pivotal fight at middleweight. Although the winner of Nassourdibe Imavov vs Caio Borralho appears to be next in line, de Ridder believes that if he has a spectacular finish, as he predicts, he could leapfrog them.

Cole Shelton - July 21, 2025

Curtis Blaydes has his eyes set on a rematch for his next fight. Blaydes is coming off a split decision win over Rizvan Kuniev back at UFC Baku. The victory got him back in the win column after being knocked out by Tom Aspinall for the interim heavyweight title. With Aspinall now the undisputed champ and likely to face Ciryl Gane next, Blaydes is calling for a rematch with Alexander Volkov.

Cole Shelton - July 21, 2025

Max Holloway is open to rematching Charles Oliveira in his next fight if he doesn’t get a title shot. Holloway moved up to lightweight for good on Saturday at UFC 318, and he scored a decision win over Dustin Poirier to defend his BMF belt. After the win, he called out Ilia Topuria, but if he doesn’t get the title shot, he says the Oliveira rematch makes sense.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - July 21, 2025

An old rival of Max Holloway believes “Blessed” is a solid choice for the next UFC lightweight title contender. Holloway recently fought Dustin Poirier in “The Diamond’s” final pro MMA fight. It was a vintage performance from Holloway, who outstruck the man who had beaten him twice.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - July 21, 2025

Jon Jones is aware of UFC CEO Dana White’s recent comments shutting down the idea of “Bones” fighting in the White House. Jones announced his retirement from pro MMA competition, which led to Tom Aspinall being crowned the undisputed UFC heavyweight titleholder. It was then revealed that “Bones” has found himself in legal trouble again. He is facing a criminal charge stemming from a traffic incident in New Mexico back in February.

Harry Kettle - July 21, 2025

Israel Adesanya has some rare praise for former rival Paulo Costa following the latter’s win over Roman Kopylov at UFC 318. On Saturday night at UFC 318, Paulo Costa was able to get himself back in the win column. He did so against Roman Kopylov and while it was a competitive fight in certain areas, the Brazilian star was able to prove that he’s still more than capable of mixing it up with those residing in the top 15 of the middleweight division.

Harry Kettle - July 21, 2025

MMA veteran Patricio Pitbull has called for a fight against Aaron Pico in the wake of his victory at UFC 318. As we know, Patricio Pitbull picked up the first win of his Ultimate Fighting Championship run on Saturday night with a win over Dan Ige. While it may not have been the flashiest performance in the world, he certainly did enough to get his hand raised – and even though he’s now in his late 30s, he seems pretty set on trying to make a run for the title.

Harry Kettle - July 21, 2025

UFC middleweight Paulo Costa has praised his coaches in the wake of his win over Roman Kopylov at UFC 318 last weekend. On Saturday night, Paulo Costa defeated Roman Kopylov to get himself back in the win column. It’s been a long time coming for a man who, as we know, has experienced his fair share of ups and downs in mixed martial arts. Alas, it seems as if he’s finally getting back on track, with his eyes firmly set on a showdown with Khamzat Chimaev.

BJPENN.COM Staff - July 20, 2025

World Title opportunities don’t come around often in ONE Championship’s stacked divisions. Two elite strikers will battle for the next crack at featherweight gold in September. Second-ranked contender Bampara Kouyate faces #3-ranked Shadow Singha Mawynn in featherweight Muay Thai action at ONE Fight Night 35 on Friday, September 5, inside Bangkok’s Lumpinee Stadium. The winner could secure the next shot at reigning champion Tawanchai PK Saenchai.

BJPENN.COM Staff - July 20, 2025

ONE Championship continues building its submission grappling division with elite talent. The latest addition might be the most promising yet. The promotion has officially signed 18-year-old phenom Helena Crevar to compete in its submission grappling division, adding another young star to its world-class roster. For Crevar, the signing represents validation of her rapid rise through the sport’s ranks.