MMA News
Alexander Hernandez vs. Chris Gruetzemacher set for UFC event on Halloween
Cole Shelton - October 5, 2020
Alexander Hernandez is looking to return to the win column in Las Vegas on Halloween. Multiple sources have told BJPENN.com that Hernandez will take on Chris Gruetzemacher on October 31.
Coach: Israel Adesanya could move to light heavyweight for next fight
Tom Taylor - October 5, 2020
City Kickboxing coach Eugene Bareman says his star pupil, Israel Adesanya, could move up to the light heavyweight division for his next fight. Adesanya is the current UFC middleweight champion, and defended his strap with a second-round TKO win over the formerly unbeaten Paulo Costa late last month. Since that win over Costa, he’s made no secret of the fact that he’d like to fight Jared Cannonier next—provided Cannonier gets by Robert Whittaker at UFC 254.
Dana White confirms next featherweight title shot will go to Korean Zombie vs. Ortega winner
Adam Martin - October 5, 2020
UFC president Dana White confirmed that the winner of The Korean Zombie vs. Brian Ortega will get a featherweight title shot. Bitter rivals ever since an incident at UFC 248 that saw Ortega slap the Korean Zombie’s friend Jay Park, The Korean Zombie and Ortega will finally get locked in the same cage on October 17 on Fight Island to settle their differences. They meet for five rounds or less to determine who will get a title shot against UFC featherweight champion Alex Volkanovski.
Conor McGregor denied training space at Italian gym, issue later resolved
Alfredo Zullino - October 5, 2020
The world’s most famous mixed martial artist, Ireland’s own Conor McGregor, was reportedly denied entry to an Italian gym. Italian publication Città della Spezia reported that the former UFC lightweight and featherweight champion was denied when he sought a place to train for a week.
Irene Aldana issues statement after decisive loss to Holly Holm
Tom Taylor - October 5, 2020
Irene Aldana has issued a statement after she came up short opposite former UFC bantamweight champion Holly Holm over the weekend. Aldana took on Holm in the main event of UFC Fight Island 4 on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi last Saturday. The bout represented the biggest test of her MMA career thus far, but unfortunately, it proved a bit too much, too soon, as she was soundly outfought by the former champion across five rounds.
Leon Edwards responds to callout from 'Wonderboy'
Tom Taylor - October 5, 2020
Surging UFC welterweight contender Leon Edwards isn’t particularly interested in a fight with Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson. Edwards, who fights out of Birmingham, UK, is currently on an eight-fight unbeaten run in the UFC welterweight division, including wins over top-flight foes like Gunnar Nelson, Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone and Rafael dos Anjos. Despite this amazing success, he’s struggled immensely to find a viable foe for his next fight.
Court McGee admits he reset his own broken nose in the middle of Carlos Condit fight
Tom Taylor - October 5, 2020
Court McGee sustained a broken nose in the middle of his fight with Carlos Condit, but he didn’t need a doctor to help him fix it. McGee met Condit met on the undercard of last Saturday’s UFC Fight Island 4 card. Mid-way through the fight, Condit landed a blow that badly broke his foe’s nose. Rather than waiting for a doctor to fix this injury, McGee took it upon himself to straighten the break between rounds.
Michel Pereira calls out Anthony Pettis with help from Johnny Walker
Adam Martin - October 5, 2020
UFC welterweight Michel Pereira called out long-time Octagon veteran Anthony Pettis with a little help from his friend Johnny Walker. Following his recent submission win over Zelim Imadaev, Pereira called out several of the UFC’s top welterweights including Jorge Masvidal and Colby Covington. However, those types of top-five ranked opponents were always Pereira shooting for the moon. A guy like Pettis, who is ranked in the bottom end of the top-15, makes a lot more sense for Pereira in his next fight. And so the Brazilian recently made the callout official with Walker’s help.
Photos | Carlos Condit and Court McGee share a meal after Fight Island scrap
Tom Taylor - October 5, 2020
After slugging it out at UFC Fight Island 4 on Saturday, Carlos Condit and Court McGee linked up to have a meal together post-fight. Condit and McGee met on the undercard of UFC Fight Island 4, which went down on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. The pair fought for the allotted 15 minutes, with Condit ultimately earning a unanimous decision victory.
What's next for Holly Holm and Irene Aldana after UFC Fight Island 4?
Cole Shelton - October 5, 2020
In the main event of UFC Fight Island 4, Holly Holm was looking to prove she is still the number one contender while Irene Aldana was looking to earn a title shot with a win. It was the first time Aldana was headlining a show and in the lead-up to the fight, it was a pick’em for a reason. There were paths to victory for both, yet it was Holm who dominated the fight from start to finish to earn a clear decision win.
UFC Fight Island 4 Reebok Pay: Carlos Condit takes home biggest sum
Harry Kettle - October 5, 2020
UFC veteran Carlos Condit took home the biggest Reebok payday after his big win over Court McGee at the weekend. The UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay is a program that features media obligations, outfit requirements and more, all of which come under the UFC fighter code of conduct. This replaced the former payouts that were done under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.
Darren Till dubs Israel Adesanya’s UFC 253 performance an “utter masterclass” but vows he can defeat "Stylebender"
Harry Kettle - October 5, 2020
Darren Till praised Israel Adesanya’s showing against Paulo Costa while simultaneously declaring that he will beat the champion one day. Adesanya was able to completely dominate Costa at UFC 253, retaining the UFC Middleweight Championship in the process. Till, on the other hand, will attempt to bounce back from his defeat to Robert Whittaker when he locks horns with divisional rival Jack Hermansson on December 5.
Antonio Carlos Junior takes a shot at Paulo Costa, asks where the vaseline was when Israel Adesanya humped him
Adam Martin - October 4, 2020
UFC middleweight contender Antonio Carlos Junior took a shot at Paulo Costa, asking where the vaseline was when Israel Adesanya humped him. After talking tons of trash on social media and in interviews, Costa lost by second-round TKO to Adesanya at UFC 253 in what was a one-sided fight. But what everyone was talking about after the fight was Adesanya’s post-victory celebration where he humped Costa from behind and then told his cornerman Eric Albarracin he wanted to ejaculate on him.
Derek Brunson calls out Paulo Costa for UFC 256 fight
Adam Martin - October 4, 2020
UFC middleweight contender Derek Brunson has requested a fight against Paulo Costa for the UFC 256 pay-per-view later this year. Brunson is coming off of a vicious third-round TKO win over prospect Edmen Shahbazyan that cemented his pale as a top-10 middleweight. Costa, meanwhile, is a top-five fighter who is coming off of a TKO loss to UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya at UFC 253. At age 36, Brunson is looking to make a title run late in his UFC career and he needs to pick up wins over top-ranked fighters such as a Costa to get an Adesanya rematch.
The Korean Zombie apologizes for trash talking Brian Ortega and Alex Volkanovski
Adam Martin - October 4, 2020
UFC featherweight contender The Korean Zombie says he regrets trash-talking Brian Ortega and Alex Volkanovski and has issued a public apology. The Korean Zombie has always been a quiet and cerebral fighter, but in the past year or so he has become more outspoken and getting more involved in back-and-forth trash-talking with both Ortega and Volkanovski on social media. In the case of Volkanovski, The Korean Zombie was not a fan of his recent title fights against Max Holloway and called him “shameful.” As for Ortega, The Korean Zombie’s friend Jay Park had a run-in with Ortega back at UFC 248 earlier this year that lead to The Zombie having choice words for Ortega.
Stephen Thompson explains why Khamzat Chimaev fight doesn't interest him: "It just doesn't make sense for me"
Adam Martin - October 4, 2020
UFC welterweight contender Stephen Thompson recently explained why he isn’t interested in a fight against hotshot prospect Khamzat Chimaev. There have been rumors lately that Thompson could be the next man to step into the Octagon with Chimaev, who has quickly become one of the biggest young stars in the UFC. Since making his UFC debut in July on Fight Island, Chimaev has already picked up three brutal stoppage wins over Gerald Meerschaert, Rhys McKee, and John Phillips. UFC president Dana White has said that he considers Chikmaev to be a “special” fighter.
Germaine de Randamie releases statement following stunning submission win over Julianna Pena
Adam Martin - October 4, 2020
UFC women’s bantamweight contender Germaine de Randamie has released a statement following her stunning submission win over Julianna Pena. De Randamie is one of the top strikers in the women’s weight classes so it was downright shocking, in a good way, to see her defeat Pena via technical submission in the third round. After Pena went for a takedown late in the third round to grind out a decision win, de Randamie turned the tables when she was able to apply a devastating guillotine choke that sent Pena napping. It was the first submission win of de Randamie’s MMA career to date.
Alex Pereira believes Israel Adesanya won't fight him again, provides update to GLORY and MMA careers
Adam Martin - October 4, 2020
GLORY kickboxing star Alex Pereira believes that UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya won’t fight him again after already losing twice. Pereira is the current GLORY middleweight and interim light heavyweight champion. He is one of the top-ranked kickboxers in the world and has been for several years now. In 2017, Pereira met Adesanya in a kickboxing match at Glory of Heroes 7 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. In what is still the lone KO loss to Adesanya’s combat sports career, Pereira knocked out Adesanya in devastating fashion. Pereira also defeated Adesanya via decision in 2016.