MMA News
Miesha Tate discusses comeback fight payout after expenses, 'You cannot set out to do this for the money'
Drake Riggs - August 19, 2021
Miesha Tate needed to make a successful comeback in July – not only for her title hopes but her bank account. The former UFC bantamweight champion returned after a five-year retirement to take on Marion Reneau. Looking sharper than ever, Tate managed to outstrike and outgrapple her opponent en route to a third-round TKO and earn a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus.
Michael Bisping trashes Dillon Danis following boxing callout: "You cannot fight... utter fool"
Adam D Martin - August 19, 2021
UFC Hall of Famer Michael Bisping trashed Bellator fighter Dillon Danis following his boxing callout, saying “You cannot fight… utter fool.” Danis took to his social media on Thursday to reveal that an offer has been made to Bisping for a boxing match. However, “The Count” fired back shortly after, insisting that there is no deal in place and explaining why he has no interest in fighting the “fool” Danis.
Khabib Nurmagomedov not convinced Jose Aldo is having a UFC career revival
Adam D Martin - August 19, 2021
Former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov is not convinced that MMA legend Jose Aldo is having a UFC career revival at age 34. After losing three straight fights to Alexander Volkanovski, Marlon Moraes, and Petr Yan in 2019 and 2020, there were many observers of the sport who felt that “Junior” was on the decline in his career. However, to the astonishment of many, Aldo has bounced back from those three losses with back-to-back wins over top bantamweight contenders Pedro Munhoz and Marlon Vera. It’s why Aldo is now back to wanting a title fight down at 135lbs.
Ramiz Brahimaj says there's no pressure on him after eventful UFC debut, confident he will finish Sasha Palatnikov
Cole Shelton - August 19, 2021
Ramiz Brahimaj had a memorable UFC debut, although it didn’t go the way he wanted. Brahimaj finally made his Octagon debut against Max Griffin in November and lost the fight by TKO due to his ear nearly falling off. Despite the ending of the fight, Brahimaj says the way he fought Griffin and how it was competitive, proves he belongs in the UFC.
Pro fighters make their picks for Jared Cannonier vs. Kelvin Gastelum
Cole Shelton - August 19, 2021
Anthony Smith explains how Conor McGregor has gone "way too far" with his social media antics
Adam D Martin - August 19, 2021
UFC light heavyweight contender Anthony Smith explained how superstar Conor McGregor has gone “way too far” with his social media antics. McGregor has been taking to his social media as of late to make numerous vulgar comments about the likes of Dustin Poirier, Daniel Cormier, and Michael Bisping, plus of course all the things he said about Khabib Nurmagomedov in the past. It’s gotten to the point where his UFC peers, like Smith, are getting tired of his antics. Speaking to LowKickMMA’s James Lynch, Smith explained why McGregor has gone “way too far.”
Jorge Masvidal predicts Tyron Woodley will knock out Jake Paul in boxing
Adam D Martin - August 19, 2021
UFC welterweight superstar Jorge Masvidal is predicting that Tyron Woodley will knock out Jake Paul in their boxing match later this month. Woodley meets Paul in a high-profile boxing match on August 29 in Paul’s native Cleveland, Ohio. It’s the fourth professional boxing match for Paul, who is 3-0 including a TKO win over Woodley’s longtime friend and training partner Ben Askren in his last outing, while for Woodley this marks the beginning of his boxing journey. It is expected to be a big-selling pay-per-view and the fight has also seen a lot of betting action on it from fans. Currently, Paul is favored at the sportsbooks to get the win but Woodley is only a moderate underdog.
Nina Nunes returns to the Octagon in December against rising contender Amanda Lemos
Adam D Martin - August 19, 2021
UFC women’s strawweight contender Nina Nunes returns to the Octagon in December when she faces off against rising contender Amanda Lemos. Combate’s Raphael Marinho was the first to report that Nunes — the No. 7 ranked fighter in the UFC women’s strawweight division — will square off with the No. 13 ranked Lemos at a UFC event set for December 18. There are no other details currently available about this event, but the addition of Nunes vs. Lemos is certainly a nice start to building up the card.
Francis Ngannou opens up on contract negotiations with the UFC: "There’s a lot going on behind the scenes"
Adam D Martin - August 19, 2021
Heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou opened up on contract negotiations with the UFC, saying “there’s a lot going on behind the scenes.” Ngannou knocked out Stipe Miocic back in March to become the new UFC heavyweight champion. Initially, the fight to make was Ngannou against Jon Jones, but Jones and the UFC couldn’t come to financial terms and that fight was called off. Instead, the UFC wanted to book Ngannou against Derrick Lewis at UFC 265. However, Ngannou couldn’t fight on that date and the UFC instead brought in Ciryl Gane, who knocked out Lewis to become the new interim UFC heavyweight champion — just three months after Ngannou won the belt.
Mauricio Rua names the three toughest opponents he ever fought in the UFC
Adam D Martin - August 19, 2021
Mixed martial arts legend Mauricio Rua aka “Shogun” named the three toughest opponents he ever fought in the UFC in a recent interview. Rua is one of the most legendary MMA fighters of all time, having been a former PRIDE and UFC champion. Now 39 years old, Shoun has spoken openly about retiring in the next year or two. He is coming off of a brutal TKO loss to Paul Craig in his last outing and considering he turns 40 years of age later this year, the future UFC Hall of Famer knows that his time in the sport is nearing its end. Although he still has another fight or two in him, it’s starting to become the time where Shogun is looking back at his MMA career and reminiscing on it.
Jorge Masvidal books Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva to headline Gamebred Fighting Championship 2 event
Harry Kettle - August 19, 2021
Jorge Masvidal has announced that Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva will headline the second Gamebred Fighting Championship event. In recent months Masvidal, who is coming off the back of consecutive defeats to Kamaru Usman, has opted to kickstart his own bare-knuckle promotion to run alongside his mixed martial arts career. Bare-knuckle is where “Gamebred” first cut his teeth in the combat sports realm and now, he wants to give fighters a chance to do the same.
Tresean Gore forced to withdraw from TUF 29 finale fight with Bryan Battle
Harry Kettle - August 19, 2021
UFC president Dana White has confirmed that Tresean Gore has been ruled out of his Ultimate Fighter 29 finale fight against Bryan Battle due to an unfortunate knee injury. Gore was tipped to be the big star coming out of the 29th edition of the show and had managed to make it all the way through to the final of the middleweight bracket. Alas, such is the unpredictable nature of mixed martial arts, we will now not see him go up against the last pick Bryan Battle for the right to win the contract.
Georges St-Pierre reveals how Dana White tried to make up for blocking Oscar De La Hoya boxing match
Drake Riggs - August 18, 2021
Georges St-Pierre was open to the idea of yet another comeback — just not in an MMA cage. Widely considered one of the greatest fighters of all time, if not the greatest, St-Pierre is now 40-years old and hasn’t fought since his middleweight title capturing against Michael Bisping at UFC 217 in 2017. However, when boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya announced his comeback, “GSP” was looked at as the first opponent before the eventual Vitor Belfort matchup was finalized.
Anthony Smith "would love" to fight Jiri Prochazka: "It just looks like it’s so much fun"
Cole Shelton - August 18, 2021
Anthony Smith thinks fighting Jiri Prochazka would be a ton of fun. Prochazka is the former RIZIN light heavyweight champion and has made good so far in his UFC career. In his debut, he knocked out Volkan Oezdemir and followed that up with a highlight-reel KO over Dominick Reyes. He will now serve as the backup for the title fight, but Smith says that is a fight he would like to have.
Kevin Lee blasts Mike Perry for turning him down: "I lost a lot of respect for the man"
Cole Shelton - August 18, 2021
Kevin Lee doesn’t understand why Mike Perry turned him down. After Sean Brady was forced out of his August 28 fight against Kevin Lee, “The Motown Phenom” said to BJPENN.com he wanted to remain on the card and that is the case. Lee will now face a short-notice replacement, Daniel Rodriguez.
Dustin Poirier won't wait for Conor McGregor but not ruling out a fourth fight: "If it makes sense, we’ll do it again"
Cole Shelton - August 18, 2021
Dustin Poirier wouldn’t be surprised if he faces Conor McGregor again. At UFC 264 in July, Poirier and McGregor had their highly-anticipated trilogy and Poirier won the fight after the Irishman broke his leg at the end of the first round. It was a disappointing ending and for Poirier, he says the second fight back at UFC 257 was much better for him as it was a definitive ending.
Sean O'Malley won't become a UFC champion, says TJ Dillashaw: "He's got too many holes"
Adam D Martin - August 18, 2021
Bantamweight prospect Sean O’Malley won’t become a UFC champion, said former 135lbs champ TJ Dillashaw, who thinks “he’s got too many holes.” Dillashaw knows what it takes to be a UFC champion because he was the promotion’s 135lbs champion on two separate occasions. Speaking to Submission Radio in a recent interview, Dillashaw was asked what he thinks about O’Malley, who is quickly rising up the ranks and is turning into a household name. When asked if he thinks “Suga” has what it takes to be a UFC champion, Dillashaw said that he doesn’t have the complete MMA game.
Vinc Pichel plans to "whoop" Austin Hubbard after changing camps to Factory X: "I'm looking to end it pretty quick"
Cole Shelton - August 18, 2021
Vinc Pichel is excited to show off how much better he has gotten since changing camps to Factory X. Pichel has been training in California for years now, but he recently decided to move to Colorado and train at Factory X. For Pichel, he says he immediately clicked with head coach, Marc Montoya and the team.
Brian Kelleher expects to finish Domingo Pilarte and call for a spot on the MSG card, eyes Sean O'Malley as future opponent
Cole Shelton - August 18, 2021
BBrian Kelleher wasn’t too surprised he is fighting Domingo Pilarte at UFC Vegas 34. After Kelleher lost a decision to Ricky Simon at UFC 258, he knew he would have to fight someone below him in the rankings. That is exactly what is happening as he is facing Pilarte, which is a rebooking as the two were supposed to fight one another at UFC 230 back in 2018.