MMA News
Dana White reacts to Francis Ngannou’s win at UFC 270, claims he meant no disrespect by not presenting the belt
Cole Shelton - January 26, 2022
Dana White has provided a reason as to why he didn’t put the belt around Francis Ngannou’s waist. At UFC 270, Ngannou defended his heavyweight title for the first time with a decision win over Ciryl Gane. The big storyline, however, was the fact this was the last fight of Ngannou’s UFC deal and he and the Las Vegas-based promotion were not seeing eye-to-eye.
Cat Zingano claims Cris Cyborg is refusing to drug test amid rumors of Bellator featherweight title bout
Josh Evanoff - January 26, 2022
Cat Zingano’s long-rumored title bout with Bellator women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg doesn’t seem to be happening anytime soon. The Brazilian recently came out and announced that her rumored bout with Cat Zingano would not be occurring. Cyborg claimed in an interview with MMA reporter James Lynch that the former UFC title challenger turned the bout down.
Darrion Caldwell expects to "break" Enrique Barzola and finish him in the first, confident he will get his belt back soon
Cole Shelton - January 26, 2022
Darrion Caldwell is eager to finally fight again. Caldwell last fought in May of 2021, suffering a split decision loss to Leandro Higo. It was his second defeat in a row and after the loss he said he wanted a quick turnaround, but that never happened.
Francis Ngannou to have surgery, will be out for nine months due to knee injuries
Josh Evanoff - January 26, 2022
Francis Ngannou is fresh off his win over Ciryl Gane at UFC 270. The victory was his first fight in nearly a year, and it seems he will once again be back on the sidelines. The UFC heavyweight champion has noted that he went into this title unification bout last Saturday dealing with an MCL tear, as well as a damaged ACL. Despite the knee injuries, he captured a unanimous decision victory over his former training partner. Retaining his 265lb gold with a surprising grappling-based gameplan.
Kamaru Usman reveals he considered fighting Jan Blachowicz
Josh Evanoff - January 26, 2022
Kamaru Usman is the UFC’s No.1-ranked pound-for-pound fighter. ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ has revealed that he was more than willing to defend that rank in 2020, and move up in weight. Usman was willing to move up 35 pounds, in fact. In a recent interview with GQ, Usman revealed that he wanted to move up in weight to fight Jan Blachowicz. The Polish fighter was the UFC’s light-heavyweight champion at the time and had recently defeated Usman’s countryman in Israel Adesanya.
Charles Oliveira vs. Justin Gaethje set for UFC 274 on May 7th
Josh Evanoff - January 26, 2022
At long last, Justin Gaethje will get to square off against Charles Oliveira at UFC 274. For months, ‘The Highlight’ has campaigned for a title shot against UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira. Gaethje has notably bashed former dual-weight champion, Conor McGregor for suggesting that he deserves a title shot. He’s also threatened to start a riot if he doesn’t get a shot at gold.
Dana White to host a fan Question and Answer Session in the wake of UFC 270
Susan Cox - January 26, 2022
Dana White, UFC President, who has been silent ever since last Saturday’s UFC 270 at the Honda Center in Anaheim will be taking a Q&A session today, January 26th. UFC 270, the 1st pay-per-view of 2022 saw Francis Ngannou (17-3 MMA) defeat Ciryl Gane (10-1 MMA) in the heavyweight title headliner event. Dana White did not put the belt around the victor and was even absent from the post-fight press conference.
Khamzat Chimaev drops sparring partner with body shot at Tiger Muay Thai (Video)
Susan Cox - January 26, 2022
Khamzat Chimaev, 27, (10-0 MMA) is a rising welterweight star who last appeared at UFC 267 in October 2021, defeating Li Jingliang (18-7 MMA) in a first round submission victory by rear-naked choke. Chimaev has been dominating in the Octagon and many believe he is on his way to becoming a future champion in the sport after going a perfect 4-0 in his young UFC career.
Chael Sonnen praises “the most feared man in boxing” Jake Paul: “These boxers are not sure that they can beat him”
Susan Cox - January 26, 2022
Jake Paul (5-0), at 25 years old, is an American social media personality and professional boxer. Paul is also an actor, rapper, and YouTuber with 20 million plus subscribers. In his last fight on Dec. 18, 2021, Paul took out former UFC champion Tyron Woodley (19-7 MMA) after sending him face-first into the canvas with a vicious knockout blow in the sixth round. At this point it is unlikely there will be a trilogy fight between the two.
Aljamain Sterling rips TJ Dillashaw for predicting a Petr Yan victory at UFC 273
Cole Shelton - January 26, 2022
Aljamain Sterling has blasted TJ Dillashaw for suggesting Petr Yan will win their rematch at UFC 273. Sterling and Yan first met at UFC 259 in March of 2021 in a highly-anticipated bout. As the fight was playing out it appeared the Russian was taking over and on his way to a win, but he then threw an illegal knee and Sterling could not continue. With that, Yan was DQ’d and Sterling became the new champ.
Angela Lee responds to opponent Stamp Fairtex's 'idol' comments
Andrew Whitelaw - January 26, 2022
Angela Lee will defend her atomweight title against Stamp Fairtex at ONE: ‘X’ on March 26th. The Thai earned her shot at the champ by winning the ONE Women’s Atomweight world Grand Prix in December. The former ONE Muay Thai and kickboxing champion pulled off a big surprise when she submitted Ritu Phogat in the final. Currently 9-2, that was only Stamp’s second submission victory. She only had her first pro MMA fight in 2018 and her skillset has evolved rapidly. Like Stamp, Angela Lee won her first world title in ONE when she was still just a teenager. She took the atomweight crown with a unanimous decision win against Mei Yamaguchi when she was just 19.
Chael Sonnen lauds Said Nurmagomedov for the “single greatest performance at UFC 270”
Cole Shelton - January 26, 2022
Chael Sonnen has nothing but praise for Said Nurmagomedov. On the main card of UFC 270, Nurmagomedov was set for his fifth UFC fight against Cody Stamann which many viewed as his toughest challenge to date. However, Nurmagomedov was able to run through the longtime ranked contender as he landed a spinning kick and then locked in a guillotine choke and tapped Stamann out in just 47 seconds.
Sean Strickland suggests special rules to set “the middle ground” for a potential Francis Ngannou vs Tyson Fury fight
Cole Shelton - January 26, 2022
Sean Strickland has an idea on how to level the playing field for Francis Ngannou and Tyson Fury. In the lead-up to UFC 270, which served as Ngannou’s first heavyweight title defense, it was made clear he was not happy with his contract and if he lost, he would be a free agent. Yet, the champ ended up being Ciryl Gane by decision and now, he has talked about wanting to box Tyson Fury.
UFC 270 fight night weights revealed: Figueiredo adds nearly 20lbs, Stamann the highest gainer
Cole Shelton - January 25, 2022
The UFC 270 fight night weights have been revealed and Deiveson Figueiredo added nearly 20lbs after weigh-ins. On Friday morning, every fighter successfully made weight but the California State Athletic Commission released the fight night weights.
Colby Covington seeks Kamaru Usman trilogy bout with win over Jorge Masvidal: "He hasn't proved he's the better fighter"
Josh Evanoff - January 25, 2022
Colby Covington may have Jorge Masvidal standing in his way, but he’s already looking past ‘Gamebred’ towards a third bout against ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’. Colby Covington is set for a rare non-title PPV main event against his friend-turned-rival Jorge Masvidal at UFC 272. However, while he’s looking to score a win over his former roommate, he also has his eyes set on a larger bout. ‘Chaos’ believes he would deserve a trilogy bout with the UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman if he defeats Masvidal.
Vicente Luque vs. Belal Muhammad 2 set to headline UFC Fight Night card in April
Cole Shelton - January 25, 2022
Vicente Luque and Belal Muhammad will be running it back. Luque and Muhammad first met in 2016 and will now be fighting again five-and-a-half years later. According to ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, the two will headline a Fight Night card on April 16 which serves as a crucial fight for the welterweight division.
Justin Gaethje wants Charles Oliveira bout in Brazil
Josh Evanoff - January 25, 2022
Justin Gaethje has long declared that he deserves a title shot against UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira, and he’s willing to go into enemy territory to get it. Gaethje is coming off a unanimous decision victory over Michael Chandler at UFC 268, in a fight that was labeled the best fight of 2021 by many fans and pundits. In the aftermath of the wild bout, ‘The Highlight’ began gunning for a title shot against the UFC lightweight titleholder Charles Oliveira.
TJ Dillashaw not interested in Jose Aldo fight, says he deserves a title shot next: "I left as a champion"
Cole Shelton - January 25, 2022
TJ Dillashaw isn’t interested in fighting Jose Aldo. After Aldo defeated Rob Font in the main event fight back in December, he called out Dillashaw for a number one contender bout. On paper, it made sense as Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan are not having their title unification bout until April. However, for Dillashaw, he says he won’t be ready until the summer due to the knee injury he sustained in his win over Cory Sandhagen.