MMA News
UFC 267 | Pro fighters make their picks for Petr Yan vs. Cory Sandhagen interim title fight
Cole Shelton - October 28, 2021
In the co-main event of UFC 267, Petr Yan and Cory Sandhagen are set to fight for the interim bantamweight title. Ahead of the fight, Yan is a -235 favorite while the American is a +190 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The majority of pros are torn on this one but the slight majority believes Sandhagen leaves Abu Dhabi with the belt.
Kayla Harrison non-committal to joining the UFC following expiration of PFL contract
Adam D Martin - October 28, 2021
PFL women’s lightweight champion Kayla Harrison is non-committal to joining the UFC following the expiration of her PFL contract. Harrison defeated Taylor Guardado via second-round submission in the women’s lightweight finals at the PFL Championship on Wednesday night at the Seminole Hard Rock & Casino in Hollywood, Florida. Harrison dominated the fight from beginning to end by utilizing her dominant grappling game to get her opponent to the mat and finally submit her. It was the second straight tournament championship victory for Harrison in PFL, and the fight also marked the end of her contract with the promotion. Now that she has fought out the final fight of her deal, Harrison is headed towards free agency for the first time.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk wants more money from the UFC: "I feel like I deserve a bigger piece of the cake"
Adam D Martin - October 28, 2021
Former UFC strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk wants more money from the UFC, saying “I feel like I deserve a bigger piece of the cake.” Jedrzejczyk is the former UFC women’s strawweight champion and one of the greatest female fighters in UFC history. The Pole hasn’t fought since March 2020, when she lost a close split decision to Weili Zhang in one of the greatest women’s MMA fights of all time. She was most recently in the news, however, when the UFC removed her from the promotion’s official rankings due to her having been inactive for over 18 months now.
Jake Paul taunts Claressa Shields following her first career MMA loss at PFL 10
Harry Kettle - October 28, 2021
Jake Paul taunted Claressa Shields last night in the wake of her first mixed martial arts defeat at PFL 10. In what was just her second professional MMA contest, Shields battled it out with Abigail Montes and came up on the wrong end of a split decision loss. It marks her first pro defeat in combat sports with her boxing record currently sitting at 11-0.
Dana White reacts after Mike Perry signs a multi-fight deal with BKFC
Christopher Taylor - October 27, 2021
Dana White has reacted after news broke that former UFC welterweight Mike Perry has inked a multi-fight deal with BKFC. ‘Platinum’ (14-8 MMA) fought out his UFC contract back in April, suffering a unanimous decision loss to Daniel Rodriguez. The setback marked Perry’s second in a row, and fourth in his past five fights overall.
Kevin Holland forced to withdraw from Kyle Daukaus rematch at UFC Fight Night 197
Christopher Taylor - October 27, 2021
Kevin Holland has been forced to withdraw from his slated rematch with Kyle Daukaus which was scheduled for UFC Fight Night 197. Holland (21-7 MMA) and Daukaus (10-2 MMA) collided earlier this month in the co-main event of UFC Vegas 38. The bout ended in controversy, as after a back and forth start the pair of middleweights clashed heads which left Kevin Holland rocked and on the canvas.
Sean Strickland opens up on disturbing neo-Nazi past: "I got kicked out of school for hate crimes"
Christopher Taylor - October 27, 2021
Streaking UFC middleweight Sean Strickland opened up on his tough childhood during Wednesday’s edition of The MMA Hour. Strickland (24-3 MMA) was expected to return at next month’s UFC 268 pay-per-view event against former middleweight champion Luke Rockhold. Unfortunately, ‘Rocky’ was forced to pullout of the contest due to injury.
Khamzat Chimaev says fighters will be 'scared again' to face him after he beats Li Jingliang at UFC 267
Cole Shelton - October 27, 2021
Khamzat Chimaev is excited to get back into the Octagon at UFC 267 but he doubts people will want to fight him after Saturday. Chimaev is set to return on the stacked UFC 267 card in Abu Dhabi against 11th-ranked welterweight, Li Jingliang. It’s an intriguing matchup and if Chimaev wins, he would prove to many that the hype would be real. However, the Swede thinks with an impressive win, people will duck him again.
Grant Dawson frustrated with draw against Ricky Glenn, admits he was 'saved by the bell' with the choke
Cole Shelton - October 27, 2021
Grant Dawson admits he beat himself up over his draw against Ricky Glenn at UFC Vegas 41. Dawson was supposed to take on Diego Ferreira but the Brazilian was forced out of the bout with an injury. Glenn ended up stepping up on short notice and even before the fight, Dawson knew it would be a tough fight but in the scrap, he says he made a huge mental error which cost him the win.
Wiz Khalifa open to taking MMA fight with PFL: "I could see myself getting in the ring"
Adam D Martin - October 27, 2021
Hip-hop artist Wiz Khalifa says that he is open to staking an MMA fight with PFL in the future, saying “I could see myself getting in the ring.” Khalifa recently became an investment with PFL, which holds its tournament championship on Wednesday. Khalifa is a huge MMA and combat sports fan himself, so when he had the opportunity to join the PFL family, he took it. But for Khalifa, this is not just about making a business investment or getting his name out there to more MMA fans. Instead, this could be the start of him potentially competing himself.
Kevin Lee removed from UFC rankings pool following suspension for Adderall
Adam D Martin - October 27, 2021
Current UFC welterweight and former lightweight fighter Kevin Lee was removed from the UFC rankings pool following a suspension for Adderall. Lee was recently suspended indefinitely following a positive test for Adderall following his unanimous decision loss to Daniel Rodriguez this past summer. Lee had been given a prescription for the drug by his doctor, but he did not inform the Nevada Athletic Commission about it and did not apply for a TUE (therapeutic use exemption). Because Lee did not follow the protocols correctly, he is now suspended. He has accepted full responsibility for the situation, though he has denied trying to cheat.
Khabib Nurmagomedov praises Islam Makhachev ahead of UFC 267: "He's top-10 in pound-for-pound right now"
Adam D Martin - October 27, 2021
Former UFC lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov praised Islam Makhachev ahead of UFC 267, saying “he’s top-10 in pound-for-pound right now.” Nurmagomerdov and Makhachev are longtime friends as well as training partners at American Kickboxing Academy. Nurmagomedov was the former UFC lightweight champion and is considered by many to be one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time. But he retired earlier this year, and he essentially passed the torch on to Makhachev to continue the legacy of Russian lightweight champions. There have been many who have said that Makhachev has what it takes to be the next Nurmagomedov.
Volkan Oezdemir plans to KO Magomed Ankalaev and shut up Aleksandar Rakic again next time out
Cole Shelton - October 27, 2021
Volkan Oezdemir didn’t think he would be off for this long after his last fight. Back at UFC 251 last July, Oezdemir suffered a KO loss to Jiri Prochazka and since then, he has not been able to fight due to a variety of different reasons. However, he will finally make his return on the main card of UFC 267 against Magomed Ankalaev.
Corey Anderson suggests Jan Blachowicz is "jealous" about how much money he makes in Bellator
Adam D Martin - October 27, 2021
Corey Anderson suggested that UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz is “jealous” about how much money he makes fighting in Bellator. Anderson left the UFC as a free agent last year following a knockout loss to Blachowicz at UFC Rio Rancho, and he soon found himself in Bellator under the terms of a new, lucrative contract. Since joining Bellator, Anderson is 3-0 with three knockouts, and in his next fight, he will battle Bellator light heavyweight champion Vadim Nemkov for the belt and the $1 million prize for the Grand Prix tournament winner. But even before actually winning the tournament, Anderson says that he has already made more money fighting just three times in Bellator than he did in his entire career with the UFC. He believes that it makes Blachowicz jealous knowing how much he earns.
Thiago Santos shares advice with Glover Teixeira on how to beat Jan Blachowicz at UFC 267
Adam D Martin - October 27, 2021
Thiago Santos shared advice with Glover Teixeira on how to beat UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz at Saturday’s UFC 267 event. Santos is a common opponent of both Blachowicz and Teixeira, who meet in the main event of this weekend’s numbered UFC event. In February 2019, Santos became the last man to hand Blachowicz a loss when he knocked him out in the Czech Republic to become the No. 1 contender at 205lbs. That win over Blachowicz set up Santos with a title fight against Jon Jones at UFC 239, and he came super close to winning the belt, ultimately losing a split decision. In Santos’ next fight after the loss to Jones, he was submitted by Teixeira in a back-and-forth fight. So he knows both men very well.
Dana White doubles down on Paulo Costa moving up to light heavyweight: "He's a 205lbs fighter"
Adam D Martin - October 27, 2021
UFC president Dana White doubled down on Paulo Costa moving up to light heavyweight, saying that “he’s a 205lbs fighter now.” Costa showed up heavy to fight week last week and his planned middleweight bout against Marvin Vettori was moved up to light heavyweight after Costa couldn’t make the 185lbs middleweight limit. The fight turned out to be a war between two very tough and durable fighters, but ultimately, it was Vettori earning the decision. Either way, there was some thought that because Costa performed so well in the fight, and since it was his first time missing weight in the UFC, that White could cut him some slack and give him another chance to make the middleweight limit. Apparently not so.
Dana White reacts to Oron Kahlon calling Afghani fighter Javid Basharat a ‘terrorist’ during their faceoff on Contender Series
Harry Kettle - October 27, 2021
UFC president Dana White has given his thoughts on Oron Kahlon calling Afghani opponent Javid Basharat a “terrorist”. During the weigh-ins for last night’s Contender Series, Kahlon missed weight and proceeded to label Basharat a terrorist in front of UFC officials and the media. It doesn’t appear as if anything came of it in terms of official punishment, but when they got inside the Octagon, Basharat made him pay with a dominant performance that was capped off by a nice submission victory.
Paige VanZant will return early next year in final fight of BKFC contract, says president David Feldman
Cole Shelton - October 26, 2021
Paige VanZant will indeed fight out the final fight of her Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship contract. VanZant surprised many and signed with BKFC last year and came up short in her debut to Britain Hart. She then dropped a decision to Rachael Ostovich in her second fight and after the fight, BKFC president, David Feldman said he wasn’t sure if VanZant would fight the final fight of her deal.