MMA News

BJ Penn Staff - June 25, 2025

It is not yet known when Islam Makhachev will fight Jack Della Maddalena for the UFC welterweight title, but the pound-for-pound king knows when he wants it to happen. Russia’s Makhachev is widely considered the best fighter on earth right now. He enjoyed a long reign as the UFC lightweight champion, but recently vacated his throne to move up to welterweight. Given his status among the sport’s best fighters, he’s expected to walk right into a fight with welterweight champ Jack Della Maddalena of Australia.

BJ Penn Staff - June 25, 2025

If you thought Kevin Holland would be getting a ranked opponent after taking out Vicente Luque earlier this month, think again. Holland met Luque, a staple of the welterweight top-15, at UFC 316. He won the fight with a second-round anaconda choke—a finish so slick it earned him a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 25, 2025

Jon Jones has made his first major business move since retiring from pro MMA competition. During the UFC Baku post-fight press conference, Dana White revealed that “Bones” decided to call it a career after a legendary run. The end of Jones’ career wasn’t without controversy, however, as fans have accused the MMA legend of avoiding a title unification bout with Tom Aspinall. Jones has had fun with the messages from angry spectators, using an image of a duck holding UFC gold as his profile pic on social media.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 25, 2025

The head coach of Merab Dvalishvili doesn’t think Umar Nurmagomedov would fare much better against his fighter in a rematch. Dvalishvili and Nurmagomedov first shared the Octagon back in January. “The Machine” put the UFC Bantamweight Championship at stake against the previously unbeaten Nurmagomedov. Dvalishvili ended up winning the fight via unanimous decision to retain the 135-pound gold.

BJ Penn Staff - June 25, 2025

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg could end up competing under the UFC banner, according to Dana White. The UFC, an MMA promotion first and foremost, has recently been pushing into the grappling sport of BJJ (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu). It recently aired an Ultimate Fighter-inspired reality show intended to crown its first UFC BJJ champions. The finale goes down tonight in Las Vegas, and will be topped by a bantamweight title fight between coaches Mikey Musumeci and Rerisson Gabriel.

BJ Penn Staff - June 25, 2025

Brian Johnson, better known as the Liver King, is in custody after flying to Austin, Texas, to fight UFC commentator Joe Rogan. Yes, you read that sentence correctly. Johnson rose to fame a few years ago, when he began promoting a bizarre raw-meat diet, which he claimed was a driving force behind is undeniably hulk-ish physique. However, it was later discovered that he had been abusing a smorgasbord of performance-enhancing drugs—all while promoting an all-natural lifestyle. The ordeal was so scandalous that Netflix actually made a documentary about it.

Cole Shelton - June 25, 2025

In the main event of UFC 317, the vacant lightweight title is up for grabs as Ilia Topuria takes on Charles Oliveira. Heading into the fight, Topuria is a sizeable -500 favorite while the Brazilian is a +340 underdog on FanDuel. Ahead of the lightweight title fight at UFC 317, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The pros are unanimous in thinking Topuria is too good on the feet and will be able to land big shots to likely KO Oliveira to become the lightweight champ and a two-weight champ.

BJPENN.COM Staff - June 25, 2025

ONE Women’s Strawweight Kickboxing World Champion Jackie Buntan is gunning to become a two-sport queen when she returns to action later this year. The American striker takes on fierce challenger Stella Hemetsberger for the vacant ONE Strawweight Muay Thai World Title at ONE Fight Night 35 on Friday, September 5, inside Bangkok, Thailand’s Lumpinee Stadium.

Harry Kettle - June 25, 2025

Ben Askren’s wife Amy has provided an update on his condition as the MMA community continues to pray for his recovery. As we know, Ben Askren is currently hospitalized as a result of pneumonia and complications from a staph infection. The mixed martial arts community has been voicing their support every step of the way, with his wife Amy providing a series of updates over the course of the last few weeks.

Harry Kettle - June 25, 2025

Tom Aspinall’s father has given his thoughts about how the UFC announced that his son was the new undisputed heavyweight champion. It’s official – Tom Aspinall is the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion of the world. After a sensational run through the rest of the division, it seemed as if the Englishman was setting himself up for a showdown with Jon Jones after capturing the interim strap. Unfortunately, that didn’t come to fruition.

Harry Kettle - June 25, 2025

UFC legend Daniel Cormier has given Jon Jones his flowers in the wake of the latter’s mixed martial arts retirement. As we all know, Jon Jones has decided to retire from mixed martial arts. It’s a bittersweet moment for a lot of fans, especially given the excitement surrounding him potentially fighting Tom Aspinall. Alas, Jon wasn’t interested in any of that, and he’s instead decided to pursue pastures new – and also deal with some fresh legal worries.

Harry Kettle - June 24, 2025

Albuquerque Police have released new body cam footage as Jon Jones’ latest legal troubles continue to unfold. As we know, Jon Jones has decided to retire from mixed martial arts. While there’s a good chance that it’s because he simply didn’t want to defend his UFC heavyweight championship against Tom Aspinall, it turns out there could be another reason. It was recently announced that Jon was the subject of a criminal case, in which it is alleged that he fled the scene of a car accident.

Cole Shelton - June 24, 2025

UFC CEO Dana White has announced a featherweight banger is set to headline Noche UFC. White took to Instagram Live on Tuesday night to reveal that Diego Lopes will face Jean Silva in the main event of Noche UFC on in San Antonio on September 13. Noche UFC was originally supposed to be a pay-per-view card, but the arena in Mexico wasn’t going to be ready in time, so the promotion moved it to San Antonio and made it a Fight Night card.

Cole Shelton - June 24, 2025

Arman Tsarukyan took aim at Ilia Topuria ahead of UFC 317. Topuria is set to challenge Charles Oliveira for the vacant lightweight title fight. It’s Topuria’s second fight at lightweight, as he vacated his featherweight title to move up to 155lbs to try and become a two-weight champion.

Cole Shelton - June 24, 2025

Charles Oliveira believes he’s a better striker than Ilia Topuria and is ready to prove it at UFC 317. Oliveira is set to take on Topuria for the vacant lightweight title in the main event of the pay-per-view card on Saturday. It’s an intriguing matchup, and although the Brazilian is a sizeable underdog, he has confidence that he’s better no matter where the fight takes place.

Cole Shelton - June 24, 2025

Kai Kara-France is confident he will bring another UFC title back to New Zealand at UFC 317. Kara-France is set to take on Alexandre Pantoja for the flyweight title in the co-main event of the pay-per-view card in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Saturday. It’s a chance for Kara-France to get revenge on Pantoja, as he lost a decision to the Brazilian on TUF back in 2016.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 24, 2025

Joe Rogan is back in the booth for UFC 317. The broadcast plans for the UFC’s next pay-per-view event this Saturday have been reported by MMAJunkie. Dan Hellie will be hosting the weigh-in show on Friday at 11:50 a.m. ET. He’ll be joined by Daniel Cormier, Michael Bisping and Laura Sanko.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 24, 2025

ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith had a lot to say about Jon Jones’ retirement. When Tom Aspinall witnessed Jones pick Stipe Miocic apart during the UFC 309 main event in New York City, many were hoping that a title unification bout would be next. At the time, Aspinall was the interim UFC Heavyweight Champion, while “Bones” held the main gold.