MMA News

Adam D Martin - September 3, 2021

Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson thanked former UFC champions Daniel Cormier and Henry Cejudo for their recent praise of him. Steveson won the gold medal in Tokyo this summer in men’s freestyle wrestling (125kgs division). Not only did Steveson dominate the tournament with his powerful wrestling skills, but he also became a bit of a media sensation because of his look and personality. There are a lot of people who now believe that Steveson should make the move to either MMA or to WWE. Both of them would be natural transitions for Steveson, who would be following in the footsteps of other former Olympians such as Cejudo and Cormier, among others.

Adam D Martin - September 3, 2021

UFC middleweight Darren Till explained why “you need to have thick skin in the sport” when it comes to trash-talking in MMA. Till is one of the better trash-talkers in the game, but he himself has also been the victim of trash-talking from his past and future opponents. Speaking to the media ahead of his UFC Vegas 36 main event against Derek Brunson, Till explained why he believes fighters should know what they are getting themselves into when it comes to trash talk in this sport. As far as Till goes, there is absolutely nothing off-limits when it comes to that.

Adam D Martin - September 3, 2021

Boxing legend Mike Tyson says that Jake Paul deserved his boxing win over Tyron Woodley last weekend, stating that “Jake Paul won.” If there is someone who knows a thing or two about boxing, it’s Tyson, arguably the most popular boxer of the last 30 years. At last weekend’s big boxing event in Cleveland, Ohio, Paul was awarded a split decision nod over Woodley on the judges’ scorecards. While it seemed like most observers thought Paul did enough to edge out the win, there are some, however, who believe that Woodley deserved the nod. Tyson, though, disagrees.

Harry Kettle - September 3, 2021

UFC featherweight Giga Chikadze has given his thoughts on the latest UFC rankings update – and he isn’t happy. The Georgian sensation put on a real show last weekend with an emphatic stoppage win over UFC veteran Edson Barboza. Many expected it to be far more even than it was but in the end, Chikadze proved that there’s every chance he could be a future champion in this division.

Harry Kettle - September 3, 2021

UFC middleweight contender Derek Brunson believes Darren Till has earned the hype he receives in comparison to the likes of Sean O’Malley. This Saturday night in Las Vegas, both Brunson and Till will hope to move a step closer to a UFC middleweight title shot against Israel Adesanya. Brunson is riding a nice four-fight win streak whereas Till, even though he’s coming off the back of a loss to Robert Whittaker, could vault himself right back into contention with an impressive win at the weekend.

Drake Riggs - September 2, 2021

Aljamain Sterling isn’t putting up with the B.S. from MMA fans anymore. The current UFC bantamweight champion won his title at UFC 259 in March when challenging Russia’s Petr Yan. However, Sterling’s win came uniquely as he became the first fighter to become champion off of a disqualification.

Drake Riggs - September 2, 2021

Zhang Weili is changing things up ahead of her next fight. ESPN has confirmed with one of Zhang’s coaches, Pedro Jordao, that the first and only Chinese champion in UFC history will be doing things differently in her big rebound training camp.

Joe McDonagh - September 2, 2021

It is rare at times we get to see a title contender meet a fast rising prospect in the division. We have exactly that with Michael Chiesa Vs. Sean Brady, which was confirmed earlier today by MMA Junkie. The UFC has yet to officially announce the fight, but according to reports both sides are in agreement. Chiesa is coming off a rough loss to Vicente Luque, via 1st round submission. ‘Maverick’ previously was on a 4 fight win streak, including wins over Diego Sanchez, Carlos Condit, Rafeal Dos Anjos and Neil Magny. The welterweight contender was noticeably upset with himself, via a social media post, and it is not surprising he finds himself back in the cage soon after the defeat.

Cole Shelton - September 2, 2021

Anderson Silva thinks Israel Adesanya will be the UFC’s middleweight champion for the foreseeable future. Adesanya is coming off a decision victory over Marvin Vettori to defend his middleweight title for the third time. However, in the fight before he did lose to Jan Blachowicz by decision for the light heavyweight belt. Yet, for Silva, he says Adesanya is too skilled and doesn’t see anyone beating him in the weight class.

Cole Shelton - September 2, 2021

Darren Till is confident he will beat Derek Brunson in the main event of UFC Vegas 36 and he has violent plans for him. Till is coming off a decision loss to Robert Whittaker last July and since then he has been recovering from an injury. With a win, the Englishman says he’s going to get a title shot and not just plans to win, but win in style against Brunson.

Cole Shelton - September 2, 2021

Jorge Masvidal is looking to return to the Octagon soon and his manager has made it clear, “Gamebred” is not ducking anyone. Masvidal is coming off a KO loss to Kamaru Usman for the belt and after the loss, many wondered would be next for him. Recently, he said he would be open to fighting Gilbert Burns and Leon Edwards. Yet, for his manager, Malki Kawa, he says Masvidal is not ducking anyone, but for him, the goal is to earn a title shot.

Cole Shelton - September 2, 2021

Justin Gaethje wanted to fight Max Holloway and had hoped he would move up to lightweight again. After Gaethje was submitted by Khabib Nurmagomedov for the lightweight strap last October, he said he wanted to return ASAP. That didn’t come to fruition and he has been on the sidelines for over a year by the time he returns. When he was sitting on the sidelines and he saw the featherweight title fight between Alex Volkanovski and Brian Ortega get delayed, he said he asked for a fight with Holloway.

Cole Shelton - September 2, 2021

Julian Erosa didn’t think he would actually get the Charles Jourdain fight. Erosa was offered the Jourdain matchup nearly three weeks ago but he said he would only do it at 150-pounds. Two weeks went by and he had no response but finally about a week-and-a-half before the event, he got told the fight was on.

Adam D Martin - September 2, 2021

The upcoming Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane UFC heavyweight title fight is being targeted for January, according to Ngannou’s coach. Ngannou knocked out Stipe Miocic back at UFC 260 in March to become the new UFC heavyweight champion. “The Predator” was expected to fight former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones in his first title defense, but when Jones and the UFC got into a much-publicized contract dispute with Jones, the matchmakers changed gears to a Ngannou vs. Derrick Lewis title fight at UFC 265 in August. However, that date did not work for Ngannou, and the UFC instead decided to give Gane the fight against Lewis with the interim heavyweight belt on the line, which Gane ended up winning via third-round TKO.

Cole Shelton - September 2, 2021

In the main event of UFC Vegas 36, a pivotal middleweight bout headlines the card as Derek Brunson takes on Darren Till. Heading into the fight, Till d. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The pros are split on this one but the majority believe Till will get his hand raised and likely by KO.

Adam D Martin - September 2, 2021

Rafael Fiziev returns against Brad Riddell in a battle of top-15 ranked UFC lightweights who are two of the best strikers in the division. MMAjunkie.com first reported the Fiziev vs. Riddell matchup for a UFC card set to take place on December 4. Riddell is currently the No. 12 ranked UFC lightweight while Fiziev is the No. 13 ranked fighter in the division, so it makes a lot of sense for these two to fight each other based on the rankings. The fact that both men prefer to stand and trade on the feet helps, too, making this an extremely exciting fight on paper between the two strikers.

Adam D Martin - September 2, 2021

Ahead of their fight at UFC Vegas 36, Darren Till reminded Derek Brunson that “I ain’t no Kevin Holland and I ain’t no Edmen Shahbazyan.” Till takes on Brunson in the main event of this Saturday’s UFC Vegas 36 card. It’s a pivotal fight between the two top-10 ranked middleweights, as the winner figures to get one step closer to the title. Heading into this fight, Till is coming off of a close decision loss to former champ Robert Whittaker, while Brunson has won four straight fights, albeit over lesser-ranked fighters, including the aforementioned Holland and Shahbazyan, who have shown serious holes in their takedown defense. Just because Brunson smashed those guys with ease doesn’t mean Till will be easy to take down, and he reminded Brunson of just that.

Harry Kettle - September 2, 2021

Ali Abdelaziz believes his client Kamaru Usman would knock Jake Paul out in under four rounds if they fought in a boxing match. Jake Paul moved to 4-0 as a professional boxer last weekend with a split decision win over former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley. While some felt as if Paul should’ve had an outright unanimous decision result, others suggested Paul should consider hanging up his gloves altogether.