MMA News
Bi Nguyen undeterred by Jenelyn Olsim loss: "The confidence hasn't changed"
Tom Taylor - September 15, 2021
At ONE: Battleground 3 in August, Bi Nguyen lost a competitive decision to rising Filipina talent Jenelyn Olsim. It was Nguyen’s fourth decision loss since joining the ONE Championship roster in early 2019, and like the three that preceded it, it wasn’t exactly cut-and-dry. “Story of my life,” Nguyen told BJPENN.com looking back on her loss to Olsim. “I’m always going to be honest with you, and there’s a lot of factors that go into this fight. If this fight was graded round-by-round, I would win, no doubt. If it was judged in America, I would win, no doubt. But it’s not, and that’s the reality of it—and that’s part of the reason I won the Ritu [Phogat] fight, because it was graded overall.
Dana White praises Anderson Silva, says he "might actually be the GOAT of combat sports"
Adam D Martin - September 15, 2021
UFC president Dana White praised former UFC middleweight champion, Anderson Silva, saying he “might actually be the GOAT of combat sports.” Silva knocked out Tito Ortiz in a boxing match this past Saturday night for Triller Fight Club, this coming after defeating Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. with a split decision upset earlier this year. Even at age 46, Silva is still competing and looking great. As far as White goes, it’s proof that the former UFC middleweight kingpin could possibly be the greatest combat sports fighter of all time, as he told media following Tuesday night’s Contender Series.
Devin Clark says he doesn't like Ion Cutelaba, plans to get first UFC finish against him and fight a ranked opponent next
Cole Shelton - September 15, 2021
Devin Clark admits he doesn’t like his UFC vegas 37 opponent Ion Cutelaba. Clark and Cutelaba were set to fight in May but Clark tested positive for COVID-19 which forced Clark out of the fight. Once he recovered, “Brown Bear” asked for the fight to be rebooked as he says he doesn’t like Cutelaba.
Derek Brunson says controlling Israel Adesanya on the ground isn't good enough, he wants to finish him
Adam D Martin - September 15, 2021
UFC middleweight contender Derek Brunson says controlling champ Israel Adesanya on the ground isn’t good enough, as he wants to finish him. Brunson is one of the hottest fighters in the UFC right now as the veteran middleweight has won his last five fights in a row, with his latest win, a submission victory over Darren Till, being the most impressive of the bunch. Following the big win over Till, Brunson called out Adesanya for a rematch in what would be a middleweight title bout. The last time these two fought, there was no title on the line and Adesanya knocked Brunson out in a devastating fashion. However, Brunson believes that he has made the necessary adjustments in order to defeat Adesanya and show that he can be beaten — and finished.
Tyron Woodley set to return to analyst desk at UFC Vegas 37
Adam D Martin - September 15, 2021
Former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley is set to return to the analyst desk at UFC Vegas 37 this Saturday night in Las Vegas, Nevada. Woodley will join Karyn Bryant and Alan Jouban on the analyst desk, according to MMAjunkie.com. Woodley has not worked on the desk since it was announced that he was stepping into the boxing ring to fight Jake Paul. In late August, Woodley finally fought Paul and lost a split decision. “The Chosen One” has been busy calling out Paul for a potential rematch but so far, Paul has resisted those requests. Either way, with Woodley likely not fighting until the end of the year, at least, he has more time to do other things that he enjoys doing, and one of those things is working as an analyst at the ESPN UFC desk.
Dana White weighs in on the Conor McGregor - Machine Gun Kelly altercation at VMA’s: “Misunderstanding or whatever it was"
Adam D Martin - September 15, 2021
Dana White weighed in on the Conor McGregor – Machine Gun Kelly altercation at VMA’s, calling it a “misunderstanding or whatever it was.” McGregor and MGK got into an incident at the MTV VMAs this past weekend in New York. The incident involved McGregor throwing his drink at MGK and the two then jawed back-and-forth with each other before being separated. According to reports, the incident took place because McGregor had exchanged some DMs with MGK’s partner, Megan Fox. It was so highly publicized that the sportsbooks are now even offering odds up for a potential “celebrity boxing” match between McGregor and MGK following the heated incident.
Michael Bisping shares his thoughts on transgender fight Alana McLaughlin: “It’s unfair to women’s MMA”
Adam D Martin - September 15, 2021
UFC analyst Michael Bisping shared his thoughts on transgender fight Alana McLaughlin, suggesting that “it’s unfair to women’s MMA.” McLaughlin has become a bit of a controversial figure in the world of mixed martial arts as she recently made her professional MMA debut and defeated Celine Provost at the Combate Global promotion. She is the first transgendered fighter since Fallon Fox earlier in the 2010s, and she is just as polarizing as there are many fans, media, and fighters who have mixed opinions about McLaughlin fighting inside the cage. There are plenty of people who are fine with it, but there are also many people who do not believe she should fight MMA.
Miesha Tate scolds “hothead” Conor McGregor for Machine Gun Kelly incident: “He is like a spoiled little toddler”
Harry Kettle - September 15, 2021
Miesha Tate has hit out at Conor McGregor for his Machine Gun Kelly altercation at the VMAs over the weekend. Tate has made no secret of the fact that she isn’t McGregor’s biggest fan with a string of complaints regarding his behaviour both in and outside of the Octagon across the last few years. More often than not there’s a solid reason why she’s making the remarks and this time around, she’s decided to pick up on Conor’s interaction with Machine Gun Kelly.
Justin Gaethje on Michael Chandler's anti-vaccine comments: 'He was just seeking attention'
Drake Riggs - September 14, 2021
The highly anticipated matchup between Justin Gaethje and Michael Chandler is set to go down… but it wasn’t without a brief scare. With UFC 268 on Nov. 6 taking place in New York City’s Madison Square Garden, there was reason to worry about the event happening at all due to potential COVID-19 vaccine mandates. Therefore leading Chandler to voice his opinion by sharing that he didn’t intend on getting the vaccine until it was “100 percent FDA approved.”
Sean O'Malley believes he's 'not too far off from fighting for the title,' but says he needs to be paid more
Cole Shelton - September 14, 2021
Sean O’Malley knows he’s the biggest name at bantamweight and wants to be paid like it. O’Malley has been a massive star ever since he fought on the Contender Series is called out by bantamweights on a regular basis. Yet, despite being a big star, O’Malley doesn’t believe he is being paid enough to headline cards, however, he does think he is only a few fights away from fighting for UFC gold.
Conor McGregor gives update on leg injury, says he feels 'like I could kick right now'
Cole Shelton - September 14, 2021
Conor McGregor has given an update on his broken leg. At UFC 264 in July, McGregor suffered a broken leg at the end of the first round in his trilogy bout with Dustin Poirier. It was a disappointing result for their trilogy to end and since then, the Irishman has been focused on his recovery. Although the injury only happened two months ago, the Irishman says his recovery has been going well.
Tito Ortiz accuses Anderson Silva of knocking him out with an illegal strike: “Now I know why the back of my head has been sore as hell”
Adam D Martin - September 14, 2021
Tito Ortiz accused Anderson Silva of knocking him out with an illegal strike, saying that “now I know why the back of my head has been sore as hell.” Ortiz was stopped by Silva in the first round of their exhibiting boxing bout for the Triller Fight Club last weekend in Hollywood, Florida. It was not a good night for Ortiz, as he was clipped and finished with punches in the very first round of the fight. However, Ortiz believes that some of the punches that Silva threw were to the back of his head. Taking to his social media in the days following the fight, “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” suggested that he was hit in the back of the head by Silva and that’s the reason why his head hurts.
Jake Paul and Tyron Woodley pass post-fight drug tests following boxing match
Adam D Martin - September 14, 2021
YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul and former UFC champion Tyron Woodley both passed their post-fight drug tests following their boxing match. Ohio Athletic Commission executive director Bernie Profato told MMAFighting.com that both Paul and Woodley passed their post-fight drug tests. There was talk before the fight that the athletes wouldn’t be drug tested, which created a storm of controversy. However, both fighters ultimately agreed to post-fight drug tests and they were both able to pass them.
Christos Giagos expecting a 'war' against Arman Tsarukyan now that he's at Sanford MMA
Cole Shelton - September 14, 2021
Christos Giagos was surprised when he found out he was offered to fight against the 14th-ranked lightweight, Arman Tsarukyan. Giagos submitted Sean Soriano back at UFC 262 in May to extend his winning streak to two and he figured he would need a couple more wins to get a ranked opponent. Yet, with the UFC having a hard time finding an opponent for Tsarukyan, Giagos jumped at the chance to face him.
Sean O'Malley plans on testing free agency once UFC contract expires
Adam D Martin - September 14, 2021
UFC bantamweight contender Sean O’Malley says he plans on testing free agency once his UFC contract expires next year. O’Malley is one of the top young bantamweights in the sport right now, as well as one of the biggest stars in the sport. However, he has continually fought lower-ranked competition, with one of the reasons he is doing so because he believes he should get paid more money to fight ranked fighters in headlining fights. O’Malley is happy to be a member of the UFC roster, but he also hopes the company pays him more money going forward.
Michael Chandler says he's "ready for violence" against Justin Gaethje at UFC 268
Adam D Martin - September 14, 2021
UFC lightweight title contender Michael Chandler says he’s “ready for violence” against divisional rival Justin Gaethje at UFC 268. Chandler meets Gaethje on November 6 at UFC 268 in what should be an absolute war between two of the best lightweights on the UFC roster. With Chandler coming off of a stoppage loss to Charles Oliveira at UFC 262 and with Gaethje coming off of a finish defeat to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 254, both fighters need to get back into the win column.
Colby Covington trashes Dustin Poirier and his “Louisiana swamp trash” family: “Him and his little kid that he uses as a prop”
Adam D Martin - September 14, 2021
Colby Covington trashed Dustin Poirier and his “Louisiana swamp trash” family, saying “him and his little kid that he uses as a prop.” Covington and Poirier were former teammates at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida, but “Chaos” was forced to leave the gym last year due to rising tensions with several of his teammates, Poirier included. Speaking on a recent edition of Submission Radio, Covington continued to take shots at Poirier and his family. As far as Covington goes, Poirier is just acting nice for the cameras, and that he isn’t a nice guy in real life.
TJ Dillashaw admits that he lied to the referee during Cory Sandhagen bout
Adam D Martin - September 14, 2021
Former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw admitted that he lied to the referee during the recent Cory Sandhagen bout. Dillashaw and Sandhagen fought for 25 minutes to a narrow split decision back in July that the judges ultimately gave to the former champ. Speaking to Submission Radio following the fight, Dillashaw admitted there was a chance that the fight could have been stopped because he had an injury to his eye that meant he had vision problems. According to Sandhagen, however, he lied to the referee and told him that he could still see fine.