MMA News
Jake Paul shares DMs to Dillon Danis while issuing a final warning to Tommy Fury
Adam D Martin - September 23, 2021
YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul shared the DMs he sent to Bellator fighter Dillon Danis while issuing a final warning to rival Tommy Fury. Paul took to his social media on Wednesday to release a two-minute clip of him talking about both Danis and Fury. Check out what “The Problem Child” said in the video below.
Dana White reacts to Conor McGregor’s botched first pitch at Chicago Cubs Game: “I’ll never do it. Never.”
Adam D Martin - September 23, 2021
UFC president Dana White reacted to Conor McGregor’s botched first pitch at the recent Chicago Cubs Game, saying “I’ll never do it. Never.” McGregor was a special guest earlier this week at Wrigley Field in Chicago and he threw out the first pitch ahead of the Cubs’ game, which turned out to be a terrible throw that saw the ball completely miss the plate. It was an awful throw by McGregor and he has been getting flak on the internet from fans about how bad his arm is, but as far as White goes, McGregor’s terrible throw just shows you that throwing a pitch is a lot hard than it looks.
Bellator 266 Fighter Salaries: Yoel Romero banks largest payday
Adam D Martin - September 23, 2021
The Bellator 266 fighter salaries have been officially released to the public, and light heavyweight Yoel Romero banked the largest payday. MMAjunkie.com was the first to report the salaries for Bellator 266 after obtaining the information from the California State Athletic Commission. The highest-paid fighter on the card was Romero, who took home $150,000 flat for his split decision loss to Phil Davis in the main event of Bellator 266. Despite the fact that Davis was the one who won the fight, he received only $100,000 for the victory. That’s because Bellator has a flat pay system for many of its top fighters and not the traditional show and win bonuses for them. So in the case of Romero and Davis, they would have been guaranteed those purses win or lose.
Brian Ortega explains how TJ Dillashaw’s comeback win helped his confidence ahead of UFC 266 title fight
Harry Kettle - September 23, 2021
UFC featherweight Brian Ortega has explained how TJ Dillashaw’s big comeback win over Cory Sandhagen has helped him heading into UFC 266. This Saturday night, Ortega will return to the Octagon for the first time in almost a year to take on Alexander Volkanovski for the UFC featherweight championship. It’ll serve as his second bite at the cherry to win the strap, almost three years on from when he fell short against Max Holloway.
Nick Diaz on watching his brother Nate fight Leon Edwards at UFC 263: "I took harder punches watching that than I ever did in sparring"
Christopher Taylor - September 22, 2021
Nick Diaz says he “took harder punches watching” his little brother fight Leon Edwards at UFC 263 than he ever has in sparring or any fights. Diaz will make his highly anticipated return to the Octagon on Saturday when he squares off in a rematch with Robbie Lawler at UFC 266. The pair originally collided seventeen years ago in a welterweight bout at UFC 47, with the Stockton native emerging victorious by way of second round knockout.
Miesha Tate forced out of slated UFC main event with Ketlen Vieira
Christopher Taylor - September 22, 2021
Former women’s bantamweight champion Miesha Tate has been forced to withdraw from her slated UFC main event with Ketlen Vieira. Tate (19-7 MMA) and Vieira (11-2 MMA) were scheduled to clash in the headliner of UFC Fight Night 195 on October 16. However, according to a recent report from Sherdog, ‘Cupcake’ has been forced out of the contest after contracting Covid-19.
Nick Diaz unsure why he is rematching Robbie Lawler at UFC 266: "I don’t know why I’m doing this. This should not happen."
Christopher Taylor - September 22, 2021
Nick Diaz will make his highly anticipated return to the Octagon on Saturday when he squares off in a rematch with Robbie Lawler at UFC 266. The pair originally collided seventeen years ago in a welterweight bout at UFC 47, with the Stockton native emerging victorious by way of second round knockout. This time around Diaz and Lawler will compete at middleweight, a decision that was made earlier this week.
Video | Dillon Danis was subbed by a security guard prior to his arrest
Christopher Taylor - September 22, 2021
New footage has surfaced of Bellator fighter Dillon Danis being choked by security prior to his arrest in New Jersey. On Monday afternoon a video surfaced on social media (see that here) showing ‘El Jefe’ struggling with police officers before eventually being handcuffed and taken into custody.
Robbie Lawler reacts to Nick Diaz changing their fight to a middleweight bout
Cole Shelton - September 22, 2021
Robbie Lawler didn’t seem to mad that Nick Diaz asked for their UFC 266 fight to be at middleweight. Diaz is set to return to the Octagon in a highly-anticipated rematch against Lawler. Although both men are known for their time as welterweights, on Tuesday, it was revealed their fight was changed to a middleweight fight due to Diaz asking for it. For Lawler, he says he’s a little light but he’s ready to fight.
Paige VanZant says she'd 'love to fight for Bellator'
Cole Shelton - September 22, 2021
Paige VanZant turned down a chance to fight for Bellator to sign with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship but she admits she’d love to fight for Bellator. VanZant has gone 0-2 in BKFC and her next fight could be do-or-die for her career with the sans gloves promotion. She says she only has one fight left on her deal and after that, she is open to signing with Bellator.
Canelo Alvarez shares his honest thoughts on Jake Paul: "Maybe it's good for boxing"
Adam D Martin - September 22, 2021
Pound-for-pound boxing great Canelo Alvarez shared his honest thoughts on YouTuber Jake Paul, suggesting that “maybe it’s good for boxing.” Alvarez is the top P4P boxer on the planet right now, and he next steps into the boxing ring when he fights the unbeaten Caleb Plant on November 6. Ahead of the fight, Alvarez and Plant took part in the pre-fight press conference. Following the presser, Alvarez spoke to reporters and he was asked questions on a number of topics, including the YouTuber Paul.
UFC 266 | Pro fighters make their picks for Valentina Shevchenko vs. Lauren Murphy title fight
Cole Shelton - September 22, 2021
In the co-main event of UFC 266, Valentina Shevchenko is looking to defend her flyweight belt as she faces Lauren Murphy. Ahead of the fight, the champ is a massive -1250 favorite while the challenger is a +750 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. To no surprise, the pros are unanimous in thinking Shevchenko remains the flyweight champ, the bigger question for the pros was whether or not the champ finishes the fight.
Dana White explains why Nick Diaz vs. Robbie Lawler 2 will now take place at 185lbs
Adam D Martin - September 22, 2021
UFC president Dana White explained why this weekend’s highly-anticipated Nick Diaz vs. Robbie Lawler 2 fight will now take place at 185lbs. Diaz and Lawler will meet in a rematch 17 years after they first fought at UFC 47 in 2004, where Diaz scored a KO over a young Lawler. All these years later and these two are now set to rematch this Saturday night at UFC 266 in Las Vegas. Originally, the fight was set to take place in the welterweight division. But as we draw closer to the fight, Diaz now wants the fight to take place in the middleweight division. Remember, Diaz hasn’t fought since 2015 against Anderson Silva and that fight was at middleweight. The last time that Diaz fought at welterweight was way back in 2013 and he apparently doesn’t want to cut weight again, according to UFC president Dana White when speaking to reporters this week.
Nick Diaz will be in welterweight title contention with win at UFC 266, says teammate
Adam D Martin - September 22, 2021
UFC fan-favorite Nick Diaz will be in welterweight title contention with a big win at UFC 266, says his longtime teammate, Gilbert Melendez. Diaz takes on Robbie Lawler in a five-round, non-title welterweight rematch at UFC 266 this Saturday night. The two rivals previously met way back in 2004 at UFC 47, with Diaz knocking Lawler out 17 years ago. All these years later and the two will now rematch. While neither man is ranked right now, it’s a big enough fight that Diaz’s teammate believes that “The Stockton Bad Boy” will move into title contention at 170lbs with a win.
Cynthia Calvillo plans to finish Jessica Andrade at UFC 266: 'If I see the opening for the kill, I'll take it'
Cole Shelton - September 22, 2021
Cynthia Calvillo did something not many people do, call out Jessica Andrade and she got her wish. On the main card of UFC 266, Calvillo is set to return to the Octagon for the first time since she lost to Katlyn Chookagian at UFC 255 last year. When she does step into the Octagon on Saturday she’ll be facing Andrade who she called out as Calvillo says she wants to fight the best.
Joe Rogan explains how Nick Diaz changed the sport of MMA
Adam D Martin - September 22, 2021
UFC color commentator Joe Rogan explained how welterweight fan-favorite Nick Diaz changed the sport of MMA during his recent podcast. Due to a previous engagement, Rogan will not be sitting at the commentary booth this weekend for UFC 266 when Diaz rematches Robbie Lawler 17 years after they first met, but he’s still very intrigued with the matchup just like the rest of the MMA world. Speaking on his “Joe Rogan Podcast,” Rogan praised Diaz ahead of his comeback. As far as Rogan goes, Diaz changed the sport because he showed that cardio was one of the most important elements of the game. By having elite cardio on top of his other skills, Nick Diaz and his younger brother Nate Diaz have both achieved an incredible amount of success in MMA.
Modestas Bukauskas provides positive health update following recent knee injury
Adam D Martin - September 22, 2021
UFC light heavyweight Modestas Bukauskas provided a positive health update following the recent knee injury he suffered inside the Octagon. Bukauskas was the victim of one of the most brutal side kicks that we have ever seen in MMA after Khalil Rountree Jr. finished him with an oblique kick. It was initially feared that Bukauskas could have broken his leg, but ultimately it was determined that it was a knee injury. Still, it was a tough thing to watch, and for Bukauskas, he know that he will now be on the sidelines for at least several months recovering from the devastating injury. However, he is optimistic that he will be able to return and make a spectacular comeback.
Alistair Overeem admits that he wanted to finish his career in the UFC
Adam D Martin - September 22, 2021
Heavyweight MMA legend Alistair Overeem admitted that he wanted to finish his career in the UFC, but he won’t be getting that opportunity. Following a knockout loss to Alexander Volkov earlier this year, the UFC decided to release Overeem from its roster. At age 41, he is getting up there in age, and with a big salary as well, the UFC decided to let him go. Overeem ended up signing with GLORY kickboxing and he will fight Rico Verhoeven next. However, he wishes that he was still in the UFC.