MMA News

Adam D Martin - September 30, 2021

UFC analyst Daniel Cormier came to the defense of his broadcasting partner Joe Rogan following recent criticism directed towards him. Rogan has been one of the UFC’s stalwarts for over 20 years during its pay-per-view broadcasts, but he was absent from UFC 266 this past weekend as he already had a hunting trip planned for the same date. With Rogan off the card, Cormier worked inside the commentary booth with Paul Felder and Jon Anik, and it turned out to be a very good broadcast team as fans and media praised all three for their work inside the booth.

Cole Shelton - September 30, 2021

Joe Solecki didn’t think Jared Gordon would be his next opponent but he is eager for the challenge he presents. Solecki is 3-0 in the UFC and coming off a decision win over Jim Miller. After the win, many thought he would be near the rankings but for Solecki, he says he’s in no rush and will fight anyone the UFC offers him and that continues with Gordon at UFC Vegas 38.

Cole Shelton - September 30, 2021

Petr Yan wasn’t surprised when he heard Aljamain Sterling pulled out of their rematch at UFC 267. Yan and Sterling were supposed to have their highly-anticipated rematch in Abu Dhabi at UFC 267 in an intriguing matchup. They first fought back at UFC 259 in March where Sterling became the new champion due to Yan throwing an illegal knee and being DQ’d.

Adam D Martin - September 30, 2021

UFC middleweight contender Kevin Holland revealed that he “almost didn’t make it” to this weekend’s UFC Vegas 38 card due to visa issues. Holland returns to the Octagon this Saturday night when he takes on Kyle Daukaus in a middleweight bout. Holland is coming off of back-to-back losses to Marvin Vettori and Derek Brunson where his lack of wrestling got him beat. Following those losses, Holland took several months off to improve his game. As part of his time off, Holland traveled to California to train with Daniel Cormier. But the Dallas native felt that the trip was too far, so he wanted to train his wrestling closer to home. That’s when his management group enlisted the help of former UFC welterweight champion Johnny Hendricks to train Holland in his wrestling, and the two have spent the last several months working on his grappling.

Adam D Martin - September 30, 2021

BKFC President Dave Feldman confirmed that the future of women’s fighter Paige VanZant is “up in the air” following two straight losses. VanZant signed a lucrative free-agent contract with BKFC last year after her UFC contract expired, but so far, things have not gone to plan for her. VanZant began her BKFC career with a decision loss to Britain Hart earlier this year, before losing to Rachael Ostovich in her second BKFC fight. It now looks like with those two losses that VanZant believes that her heart might not be in the BKFC game and she is considering going back to MMA.

Harry Kettle - September 30, 2021

Former UFC fighter and commentator Dan Hardy has shared some of the direct messages he’s received from Tyron Woodley on social media. Over the course of the last few days we’ve seen a strange rivalry emerge between Dan Hardy and Tyron Woodley, largely focusing on Woodley’s loss to Jake Paul – countered by “The Chosen One” mocking the “Outlaw” for never winning a UFC title.

Harry Kettle - September 30, 2021

UFC light heavyweight contender Johnny Walker is gearing up to try and make a run at becoming the UFC’s latest two-division champion. While he may have been through his fair share of ups and downs throughout his time in the UFC, there’s no denying just how exciting Johnny Walker is. From his fight style to his personality to his look and beyond, there’s a lot of star potential there – so long as he can begin to piece it all together.

Christopher Taylor - September 30, 2021

Former UFC heavyweight Mark Hunt sent a antagonizing message to Dana White following his recent lawsuit revival against the promotion. Hunt filed a lawsuit against the UFC shortly following his unanimous decision loss to Brock Lesnar at UFC 200. That ruling was later changed to a no-contest, this after ‘The Beast’ tested positive for performance enhancing drugs.

Cole Shelton - September 29, 2021

Dominick Cruz will be returning to the Octagon in December but not against Sean O’Malley. O’Malley has been hinting that he will be fighting in December and called out Cruz but according to MMAFighting, the former bantamweight champion will return on December 11 at UFC 269 against Pedro Munhoz. The event is expected to take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Cole Shelton - September 29, 2021

As Valentina Shevchenko and Amanda Nunes continue to dominate their divisions, the call for the trilogy has only increased, yet for Shevchenko, she says the Brazilian doesn’t want it. Shevchenko and Nunes first fought back at UFC 196 where the Brazilian won a decision. They then had their rematch at UFC 215 as Nunes was defending her bantamweight title and once again the Brazilian got her hand raised, yet this time was by a controversial split decision. Since then, Shevchenko went down to flyweight and has gone 8-0 including defending her belt six times. With that, many are calling for the trilogy to happen, however, Shevchenko claims Nunes isn’t interested in it.

Cole Shelton - September 29, 2021

Aljamain Sterling wants it known that the bantamweight division is in this mess because of Petr Yan. At UFC 259 in March, Yan was looking to defend the belt for the first time when he took on Sterling. Early on, Sterling had success but after that, the Russian began to take over and was on his way to winning the fight. Yet, in the fourth round, he threw an illegal knee and Sterling couldn’t continue so the fight was ruled a DQ and Sterling became the champ.

Adam Martin - September 29, 2021

UFC president Dana White explained his thought process behind the UFC 267 interim bantamweight belt, saying “we had to do the interim title.” Sterling defeated Yan via fourth-round DQ back at UFC 259 in May to become the new UFC bantamweight champion. The UFC booked the rematch to take place at UFC 267 in October, but the fight was canceled when Sterling pulled out due to injuries. With Sterling out of the fight, the UFC called upon top contender Cory Sandhagen to take on Yan at UFC 267. And despite the bantamweight title being fought for six months ago, the promotion decided that the best course of action was to make a new interim title fight at UFC 267.

Cole Shelton - September 29, 2021

Jared Gordon wanted to make a run at featherweight but will be moving back up to lightweight at UFC Vegas 38. Gordon dropped down on Fight Island last summer and beat Chris Fishgold by decision. He then beat Danny Chavez by decision in a fight he missed weight so the UFC told him he had to move back up to lightweight.

Adam Martin - September 29, 2021

YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul “absolutely has a chance” of beating Conor McGregor in a boxing match, says rival coach Javier Mendez. Mendez is the longtime coach of former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomeov and other top fighters at American Kickboxing Academy, so he knows combat sports inside out. In a recent interview with BetWay, Mendez was asked how he believes a boxing match between McGregor and Paul would go. According to the longtime coach, he believes Paul has several advantages in a boxing match against McGregor, and he explained why.

Adam Martin - September 29, 2021

UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling shared his prediction for the upcoming interim title fight between Petr Yan and Cory Sandhagen. Sterling defeated Yan via fourth-round DQ at UFC 259 earlier this year to become the undisputed 135lbs champion, but with the stoppage being so controversial, the UFC had no choice but to book an immediate rematch. Sterling and Yan were supposed to fight at UFC 267 in October, but the rematch was scrapped last week when Sterling was forced to withdraw due to lingering injuries. The UFC was adamant that Yan stays on the card and the promotion booked him against one of the division’s other top contenders in Sandhagen for an interim title fight. The two will now meet at UFC 267 for the interim 135lbs belt.

Adam Martin - September 29, 2021

Giga Chikadze met with UFC president Dana White and he called for the next featherweight title shot against Alexander Volkanovski. Chikadze has won seven straight fights in the Octagon and most recently defeated Edson Barboza via knockout to emerge as a serious title threat at 145lbs. This past Saturday night, Volkanovski defended his 145lbs title once again with a unanimous decision win over Brian Ortega in the “Fight of the Night” at UFC 266. While Volkanovski is fully expected to face the winner of November’s Max Holloway vs. Yair Rodriguez for the belt sometime next year, Chikadze is doing his best to complicate things by calling for the title shot himself.

Cole Shelton - September 29, 2021

In the main event of UFC Vegas 38, Thiago Santos looks to snap his losing streak when he battles Johnny Walker. Ahead of the fight, Santos is a -160 favorite while the comeback on the Brazilian is +140. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The majority believe Santos will get back into the win column in a big way as he will KO Walker.

Adam D Martin - September 29, 2021

UFC superstar Nate Diaz is hinting at a December return to the Octagon, though UFC president Dana White wouldn’t confirm he is fighting. Diaz last competed at UFC 263 in June when he went five rounds with Leon Edwards in a welterweight contest. After dropping the first four rounds of the fight, Diaz came on strong in the fifth and final round and nearly knocked Edwards out with strikes. In the end, it was Edwards who won the decision and Diaz dropped another fight on his record, but as far as the fans go, Diaz was a winner that night just for the way that he ended the fight strong.