MMA News

Harry Kettle - October 21, 2021

Former Cage Warriors champion Modestas Bukauskas has been released by the promotion, just weeks after suffering a nasty knee injury. Bukauskas came into the UFC with a great deal of momentum and an 11-2 record but within the span of just one year, that’s dropped to 11-5 after defeats to Jimmy Crute, Michał Oleksiejczuk and Khalil Rountree Jr.

Harry Kettle - October 21, 2021

UFC has confirmed plans for Paulo Costa vs Marvin Vettori to go ahead at a catchweight instead of middleweight. For the last few months we’ve seen fans foaming at the mouth over the prospect of seeing Paulo Costa clash with Marvin Vettori. Then, yesterday, a spanner was thrown into the works when Costa admitted he wouldn’t be able to make the middleweight limit and would be requesting a catchweight.

Drake Riggs - October 20, 2021

RIZIN bantamweight champion Kyoji Horiguchi is set to attempt to reclaim the title he never lost. Bellator announced on Wednesday that their newest Bellator 135-pound champion in Sergio Pettis has his next challenger. Pettis will defend against the RIZIN titlist in Horiguchi on Dec. 3 at Bellator 272 in Uncasville, Connecticut.

Drake Riggs - October 20, 2021

Kyra Batara may be small in stature, but she isn’t afraid of the “American Gangster” Chael Sonnen. Standing tall at just 4-foot-11, “Mogwai” recently recalled the time she ran into former UFC middleweight and light heavyweight challenger Chael Sonnen – only to try and take down the great wrestler himself.

Cole Shelton - October 20, 2021

Jake Paul and Tommy Fury will box one another before the year is up in Tampa Bay. According to British outlet and newspaper, The Sun, Paul and Fury have been agreed to for December 18. The fight was made official on Friday with the fight taking place in Tampa Bay, Florida. both men have been campaigning for the fight since they boxed on the same card in August.

Cole Shelton - October 20, 2021

Kevin Lee is set to be suspended by NSAC for using adderall. Lee returned back in August and lost a decision to Daniel Rodriguez in his return to welterweight. It was a disappointing loss for Lee, and now, he revealed on Instagram that he was flagged by NSAC for using adderall.

Adam D Martin - October 20, 2021

It appears there is some last-minute drama as Marvin Vettori is claiming that Paulo Costa is overweight for their UFC Vegas 41 main event. According to Vettori, who spoke to reporters at media day ahead of Saturday’s UFC Vegas 41 event, he is hearing that Costa is having trouble making the 185lbs weight limit ahead of their main event this weekend. As far as “The Italian Dream” goes, he has no problem, fighting Costa up at 205lbs if he can’t make middleweight. He just wants to fight him.

Adam D Martin - October 20, 2021

Bellator MMA fighter Dillon Danis claimed that former UFC champion Tyron Woodley was contractually not allowed to KO Jake Paul in boxing. Woodley and Paul met in a professional boxing match at the end of August in Paul’s backyard of Cleveland, Ohio. It was a competitive fight that went the full eight contracted rounds, but at the end of the fight, it was Paul who was awarded a split decision. Most people who watched agreed that Paul did enough work to win enough rounds on points to earn the decision, but it is also fair to say that Woodley had some of the biggest moments of the fight. Namely early on in the contest when he knocked Paul into the ropes.

Adam D Martin - October 20, 2021

MMA legend and current Bellator heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko blasted UFC president Dana White, saying “he has no respect towards fighters.” Emelianenko is one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time, having fought for many of the top fight promotions in the sport’s history. The Russian currently stars for Bellator MMA, where this weekend he fights UFC veteran Tim Johnson in a heavyweight bout that headlines Bellator 269. There is a chance that this could be the final fight of Emelianenko’s incredible MMA career, and if it’s the case, then he would do so without having fought for the UFC. It’s arguably the biggest “what if” story in mixed martial arts history as Emelianenko was never able to prove his heavyweight greatness at the UFC level.

Adam D Martin - October 20, 2021

UFC president Dana White reacted after promotional superstar Conor McGregor allegedly attacked DJ Francesco Facchinetti in Italy. McGregor allegedly broke the nose of Facchinetti this past weekend at a party in Rome. According to the DJ, he and McGregor were having a good time at a party when McGregor got angry out of nowhere, punched the DJ in the face, and broke his nose. According to the DJ, he now plans on suing McGregor for this incident. Of course, it’s far from the first time that McGregor has been in trouble with the law, so it’s only natural that his boss, White, was asked about the incident involving the UFC’s biggest star when speaking to the media.

Cole Shelton - October 20, 2021

In the main event of UFC Vegas 41, top-five middleweights collide as Paulo Costa battles Marvin Vettori. Heading into the fight, Vettori is a -150 favorite with the comeback on the Brazilian at +125. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The majority of pros believe Vettori will be able to use his wrestling to grind out a win over Costa.

Adam D Martin - October 20, 2021

UFC middleweight contender Sean Strickland credited “white trash f*ck” Conor McGregor for reaching the “pinnacle of success” in MMA. McGregor got into another incident this past weekend after allegedly punching and breaking the nose of Italian DJ Francesco Facchinetti. It is far from the first time that McGregor has gotten into trouble with the law, and it likely won’t be the last. When speaking to host Michael Bisping on the “Believe You Me” podcast, Strickland was asked his thoughts on the whole situation with McGregor. As far as Strickland goes, McGregor is everything that a successful MMA fighter could be, but he is still a “white trash f*ck.”

Adam D Martin - October 20, 2021

UFC middleweight contender Marvin Vettori blasted “crazy” Paulo Costa for drinking a bottle of wine before his Israel Adesanya fight. Costa fought Adesanya for the UFC middleweight title last October at UFC 253 and he suffered a second-round knockout loss for his troubles. Following the fight, Costa revealed that he was hungover in the Octagon after having drunk a bottle of wine the night before the fight. According to Costa, he had problems sleeping so he drank the bottle in order to help him fall asleep. While Costa eventually did fall asleep, being hungover in the fight clearly was not a good idea as he ended up looking listless and suffered a knockout defeat.

Harry Kettle - October 20, 2021

Aljamain Sterling has revealed that training with Merab Dvalishvili helped him realise that he wasn’t healthy enough to compete at UFC 267. Next weekend, Petr Yan will meet Cory Sandhagen with the winner walking home as the UFC interim bantamweight champion. The match-up was initially supposed to see Sterling defending the undisputed strap against former champion Yan in a rematch of their controversial showdown earlier this year. However, continued neck issues have prevented it from taking place.

Harry Kettle - October 20, 2021

UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has revealed that he sent a DM to rival Paulo Costa after their battle at UFC 253. While he may have had a blip up at light heavyweight, there’s nobody better than Israel Adesanya at 185 pounds – or at least, that’s how it seems. In his second bout of 2020 he went toe to toe with long-time foe Paulo Costa and in one of the most dominant displays of the year, he successfully retained his belt against the Brazilian.

Drake Riggs - October 19, 2021

Despite the strawweight division being loaded with contenders, Zhang Weili will get an instant rematch with new champion Rose Namajunas. First colliding with Namajunas at UFC 261 in April, Zhang (21-2) attempted to defend her 115-pound UFC crown for just the second time – her first coming over the legendary Joanna Jedrzejczyk in March 2020. Unfortunately for China’s first promotional titleholder, “Magnum” fell to a quick head kick knockout in only 78 seconds.

Cole Shelton - October 19, 2021

Paddy Pimblett doesn’t see a reason to fight anyone ranked on his current contract. Pimblett made his UFC debut back in September and scored a first-round KO over Luigi Vendramini. It was a highlight-reel finish and after the fight, many wondered what would be next for him, with some thinking he would get a ranked opponent, but Pimblett says that will not be the case.

Drake Riggs - October 19, 2021

Joanna Jedrzejczyk is letting it be known that her place in the official UFC rankings is none of her concern. The former undefeated 115-pound strawweight queen last fought in 2020’s Fight of the Year when suffering a split decision loss to Zhang Weili at UFC 248 in March. At present, the Polish superstar finds herself ranked at No. 2 in her division and even moved up in the pound-4-pound list following Marina Rodriguez’s victory over Mackenzie Dern – one of Jedrzejczyk’s detractors.