MMA News
Julia Budd admits it would be a bummer to miss out on a Kayla Harrison fight
Drake Riggs - October 14, 2021
PHOENIX — Julia Budd is making the move to the PFL after a championship run with Bellator. The first and former women’s featherweight champion in Bellator history suffered a single defeat in her run with the promotion when facing Cris “Cyborg” Justino in January 2020. Budd (15-3) rebounded with two wins over Jessica Miele and Dayana Silva.
Police audio from Luis Pena's girlfriend reporting domestic violence released: 'I need him gone and I need help'
Cole Shelton - October 14, 2021
The 911 call from Luis Pena’s girlfriend has been released. On Thursday, TMZ Sports obtained the police audio from Pena’s girlfriend who called the police to report the domestic violence. She confirmed Pena hit him and she has marks to prove it and she wants him gone for good. MMAFighting then obtained a longer version of the call.
Justin Gaethje promises to finish Michael Chandler as "violently as possible" at UFC 268
Adam D Martin - October 14, 2021
UFC lightweight contender Justin Gaethje says that he promises to finish Michael Chandler as “violently as possible” at UFC 268. Gaethje hasn’t competed since last October when he lost by submission to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 253. Chandler, meanwhile, is coming off of a vacant title fight TKO loss to Charles Oliveira at UFC 263. When Gaethje and Chandler meet next month at UFC 268, it promises to be an action-packed fight between two of the best lightweights in the world. And as far as Gaethje goes, it will be like many of his fights: brutal and violent.
Khamzat Chimaev "on good terms" with Khabib Nurmagomedov after apologizing for previous comments
Adam D Martin - October 14, 2021
Khamzat Chimaev is reportedly “on good terms” with Khabib Nurmagomedov after apologizing for the previous comments which he made. Chimaev previously told Nurmagomedov that he would “smash” him in an Instagram Live video from earlier this year. Those remarks triggered a bit of a feud between Chimaev and Nurmagomedov, and not long after, Chimaev left Dominance MMA.
Damon Jackson pleased with 'dominant' win over Charles Rosa, wants anyone ranked ahead of him next
Cole Shelton - October 14, 2021
Damon Jackson is happy with his win over Charles Rosa but is a tad disappointed he didn’t get the finish. Jackson dominated the majority of the fight as he controlled Rosa on the ground and had a few submission attempts. However, Rosa fought out of it and went 15 minutes with Jackson.
Bibiano Fernandes expects to finish John Lineker at ONE X to defend his belt: 'He's no champion'
Cole Shelton - October 14, 2021
Bibiano Fernandes is excited to finally make the walk to the cage once again. Fernandes hasn’t fought since October of 2019 where he submitted Kevin Belingon to defend his bantamweight title. It was his third straight fight against Belingon, where Fernandes won the final two fights. Since the win, however, COVID-19 and a contract dispute kept Fernandes out of the cage.
Brandon Moreno vs. Deiveson Figueiredo trilogy official for UFC 270
Adam D Martin - October 14, 2021
The upcoming trilogy fight between UFC flyweight champion Brandon Moreno and his rival Deiveson Figueiredo is now official for UFC 270. Moreno vs. Figueiredo 3 was originally set to take place at UFC 269 on December 11. However, after the UFC added a welterweight bout between Leon Edwards and Jorge Masvidal to the card, the promotion decided there was enough star power on the card. With UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira vs. Dustin Poirier and UFC women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes vs. Julianna Pena already set for UFC 269, the promotion decided that it would instead move the Moreno vs. Figueiredo fight to 2022.
Ciryl Gane not scared of Francis Ngannou's KO power ahead of UFC 270
Adam D Martin - October 14, 2021
UFC interim heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane says that he is not scared of Francis Ngannou’s KO power ahead of their title fight at UFC 270. Gane won the interim heavyweight belt with a TKO win over Derrick Lewis back at UFC 265, and he will now look to unify the belt against the UFC heavyweight champion Ngannou at UFC 270, which takes place on January 22, likely at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. While Ngannou is the hardest puncher in the UFC heavyweight division and coming off of a brutal KO win over former champ Stipe Miocic, Gane isn’t afraid of his former training partner’s power. Speaking to Submission Radio in a recent interview, Gane said that while he appreciates Ngannou’s KO power, it is not something that he fears.
Gina Carano joins Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone in Western film “Terror on the Prairie”
Harry Kettle - October 14, 2021
Former MMA fighter Gina Carano will join Donald Cerrone as part of the cash for Terror on the Prairie. Carano, who hasn’t fought professionally since her defeat to Cris Cyborg way back in 2009, has been best known in the last few years for her transition into acting. She featured in a number of notable roles before landing the role of Cara Dune in The Mandalorian, one of the most successful Disney+ originals up to this point.
Claressa Shields insists she is not homophobic after protesting DC Comics’ bisexual Superman
Harry Kettle - October 14, 2021
PFL star Claressa Shields has insisted she isn’t homophobic after questioning DC Comics’ decision to make Superman bisexual. It was revealed earlier this week that in an upcoming comic book story, Jon Kent – the son of Clark Kent – will be involved in a romantic relationship with a man. That led to quite the divide within the community regarding whether or not it was a good or bad move and based on her comments, Shields clearing wasn’t happy about it.
Eye, Robertson and Mazany to compete in round robin at High Rollerz 'ladies night'
Andrew Whitelaw - October 13, 2021
Coming hot on the heels of its ‘Cops vs Stonerz’ show in September, High Rollerz is putting on a special ladies night with all proceeds going towards breast cancer. The show will take place on October 16th with fan favorite Renato Leranja on the mic alongside UFC strawweight Angela Hill while Fight Circus CEO, Jon Nutt will be on MC duties.
Francis Ngannou unhappy having to borrow money for training camp
Andrew Whitelaw - October 13, 2021
Francis Ngannou has a very strong claim to being ‘the baddest man on the planet’ and he wants to get paid accordingly. The UFC heavyweight champion will defend his belt against Ciryl Gane at UFC 270, but he will earn significantly less in that fight than his boxing counterparts. The Cameroonian recently appeared on the MMA hour, where he was asked if he was unhappy that the likes of Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder scored a much bigger payday. To which he replied,
Jake Paul vs. Tommy Fury 'quite close' to being made official for the end of the year
Cole Shelton - October 13, 2021
Jake Paul vs. Tommy Fury is close to being made official. According to Fury’s promoter, Frank Warren, the fight is nearly agreed to and will take place in November or December. The two sides have been talking ever since both men picked up wins in August and now it has finally got to a point where a deal seems imminent.
Jon Jones says he 'never hit' his fiancée, nor did his daughters wake up to their argument
Cole Shelton - October 13, 2021
Jon Jones denies ever hitting his fiancée. In late September after the Hall of Fame ceremony, Jones was charged with battery, domestic violence, and injuring and tampering with a vehicle. Police audio then came out where the security officer at the hotel called police to report the domestic. The audio detailed that Jones allegedly pulled her hair and hit her, as she had a bleeding mouth.
Jon Jones issues statement after being kicked out of Jackson-Wink MMA
Adam Martin - October 13, 2021
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones issued a statement after being kicked out of his gym, Jackson-Wink MMA. On Wednesday, Jones’ longtime striking coach Mike Winkeljohn spoke to The MMA Hour’s Ariel Helwani and revealed that “Bones” had been booted from Team Jackson-Wink after his latest arrest. According to Winkeljohn, it was a difficult decision for him to make, but one that he had to do as he is a father of three and a husband himself. After learning of Jones’ arrest in Las Vegas last month for domestic battery, Winkeljohn had no choice but to tell Jones to stop drinking and to stay away from the gym until he turns his life around.
Conor McGregor insults Dagestan with suggestions of inbreeding, sparks heated feud with Ali Abdelaziz: “When you die, I celebrate”
Adam D Martin - October 13, 2021
Conor McGregor insulted Dagestan with suggestions of inbreeding, sparking a heated feud with Ali Abdelaziz: “When you die, I celebrate.” McGregor and Abdelaziz have gotten into it on social media and in interviews before, so clearly there is no love lost between these two. McGregor, of course, was longtime rivals with Abdelaziz’s client Khabib Nurmagomedov. Even though “The Eagle” is retired from MMA these days, McGregor continues to take shots at him whenever he can. On Wednesday, McGregor fired a shot at Nurmagomedov and Abdelaziz replied back. That led to a bit of a flaming war between McGregor and Abdelaziz, as you can see below.
Brent Primus expects to KO Benson Henderson and earn a title shot: 'I'm going to throw f*****g bombs'
Cole Shelton - October 13, 2021
Brent Primus has been asking for a big-name opponent for quite some time and he gets his wish on Saturday night at Bellator 268. Primus returned in July and lost a controversial split decision to Islam Mamedov in a fight many thought he won. After the fight, he asked his management and Bellator for a high-profile fight. He got just that as he will face Benson Henderson on Saturday in Arizona.
Justin Gaethje expresses his disdain for Colby Covington but admits “he’s a good fighter”
Adam D Martin - October 13, 2021
UFC lightweight contender Justin Gaethje expressed his disdain for welterweight Colby Covington but admitted that “he’s a good fighter.” Gaethje is set to take on Michael Chandler at UFC 268 next month in an important fight between two of the top-five ranked lightweights in the world. In the main event of the card, UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman fights Covington in a rematch. For Gaethje, he is teammates with Usman training under coach Trevor Wittman. So Gaethje is invested in this main event between Usman and Covington more than most people are.