MMA News
Pros react after A.J. McKee submits Patricio Freire at Bellator 263
Chris Taylor - July 31, 2021
Tonight’s Bellator 263 event was headlined by the tournament finals of the promotions 145-pound grand prix as Patricio Freire squared off with A.J. McKee. Patricio Freire (32-5 MMA), Bellator’s reigning featherweight champion, had entered tonight’s main event on a seven-fight winning streak, his latest being a first round submission victory over Emmanuel Sanchez in the featherweight grand prix semifinals.
Bellator 263 Results: A.J. McKee stops Patricio Freire in Round 1 (Video)
Chris Taylor - July 31, 2021
Tonight’s Bellator 263 event is headlined by the tournament finals of the promotions 145-pound grand prix as Patricio Freire meets A.J. McKee. Patricio Freire (32-4 MMA), the reigning Bellator featherweight champion, will enter tonight’s main event sporting a seven-fight winning streak, his latest being a first round submission victory over Emmanuel Sanchez in the featherweight grand prix semifinals.
UFC Vegas 33 Bonus Report: Jason Witt and Bryan Barberena awarded FOTN
Chris Taylor - July 31, 2021
The Octagon remained in Nevada for tonight’s UFC Vegas 33 event, a ten-bout fight card headlined by Uriah Hall vs. Sean Strickland. The highly anticipated middleweight main event turned out to be a rather one sided affair. While Uriah Hall showed a ton of heart in fighting for the full twenty-five minutes, he had little to offer Strickland this evening. Instead, Sean Strickland shined in his first career UFC main event outpointing ‘Prime Time’ for the majority of their five-round contest on route to a unanimous decision victory.
Pros react after Sean Strickland defeats Uriah Hall at UFC Vegas 33
Chris Taylor - July 31, 2021
A key middleweight bout between Uriah Hall and Sean Strickland served as the headliner of tonight’s UFC Vegas 33 event. Hall (17-10 MMA) had entered tonight’s main event sporting a four-fight winning streak. During that impressive run, ‘Prime Time’ earned stoppage victories over Bevon Lewis, Anderson Silva and most recently Chris Weidman.
UFC Vegas 33: 'Hall vs Strickland' Live Results and Highlights
Chris Taylor - July 31, 2021
The Octagon remains in Nevada for tonight’s UFC Vegas 33 event, a ten-bout fight card headlined by middleweights Uriah Hall and Sean Strickland. Hall (17-9 MMA) will enter tonight’s main event sporting a four-fight winning streak. During that impressive run, ‘Prime Time’ has scored stoppage victories over Bevon Lewis, Anderson Silva and most recently Chris Weidman.
Photo | Former UFC fighter Alan Belcher looks almost unrecognizable ahead of BKFC debut
Chris Taylor - July 31, 2021
Former UFC fighter Alan Belcher looks almost unrecognizable ahead of his BKFC heavyweight debut which is set for August 20. Belcher (18-8 MMA) has not competed in combat sports since 2013, where he suffered a technical decision loss to Michael Bisping in a UFC middleweight bout.
Bellator 263 Fighter Salaries: Patricio Freire guaranteed $250,000 win or lose
Chris Taylor - July 31, 2021
The fighter salaries for tonight’s Bellator 263 event have been revealed and featherweight headliners Patricio Freire and A.J. McKee are set to cash in. Freire and McKee will collide in the tournament finals of the promotions 145-pound grand prix this evening, with the winner set to take home an additional $1 million award.
UFC Vegas 33 takes another hit, down to a total of nine bouts
Chris Taylor - July 31, 2021
UFC Vegas 33 is now down to a total of nine contests, this after losing a scheduled welterweight bout between Jared Gooden and Niklas Stolze. Tonight’s fight card was originally slated to feature fifteen contests. However, due to slew of botched weight cuts and recent positive tests for COVID, the event will now proceed with just nine fights (at least we hope).
UFC Vegas 33 co-headliner scratched just hours before the event
Chris Taylor - July 31, 2021
Tonight’s UFC Vegas 33 event is down to a total of ten contests, this after losing its scheduled co-headliner between Rani Yahya and Kyung Ho Kang. Yahya (27-10-1 MMA) and Kang (17-8 MMA) had been booked in a bantamweight matchup which was set to serve as the co-main attraction of tonight’s fight card in Las Vegas.
Darren Till investigated by Police following offensive social media posts
Christopher Taylor - July 30, 2021
UFC middleweight Darren Till is being investigated by Merseyside Police after sharing offensive posts on his official Instagram page. Till (18-3-1 MMA) has amassed a large social media following thanks to his erratic trash talk and brash sense of humor. However, a few days ago the Liverpool native apparently crossed the line when he shared a meme mocking transgender pregnancy.
Nate Diaz responds after being labelled a "fake gangster" by Gilbert Burns
Chris Taylor - July 30, 2021
Nate Diaz has responded after being labelled a “bitch ass fake gangster” by top UFC welterweight contender Gilbert Burns. Burns (20-4 MMA) returned to the win column earlier this month at UFC 264, where he defeated former welterweight title challenger Stephen Thompson by way of unanimous decision. Following his victory over ‘Wonderboy’, the Brazilian proceeded to callout a number of fighters including Jorge Masvidal, Leon Edwards and the aforementioned Nate Diaz.
Justin Gaethje vs. Michael Chandler agreed to for UFC 268
Cole Shelton - July 30, 2021
Justin Gaethje and Michael Chandler will finally meet inside the Octagon. Ever since Chandler signed to the UFC, he has been linked to a fight with Gaethje. After both men lost their fights for the belt, the scrap made all the more sense. However, the former Bellator champ claimed Gaethje was turning him down. Now, according to ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, Gaethje and Chandler have agreed to fight one another on November 6 at UFC 268. The event will likely take place at Madison Square Garden.
UFC Vegas 33 weigh-in results: Nicco Montano has huge weight miss, several fights compromised
Adam D Martin - July 30, 2021
The official weigh-ins for UFC Vegas 33 took place on Friday in Las Vegas, Nevada, and we had a huge weight miss from Nicco Montano. Montano, who has struggled to make weight throughout her UFC career, came in at 143lbs for her women’s bantamweight bout against Wu Yanan. Montano has not fought in over two years and has had a string of fights scratched. The UFC has officially confirmed that this fight is off.
Stephen Thompson says Gilbert Burns was "scared of my striking" at UFC 264
Adam D Martin - July 30, 2021
UFC welterweight contender Stephen Thompson says that rival Gilbert Burns was “scared of my striking” during their recent fight at UFC 264. Thompson lost a unanimous decision to Burns in the co-main event of UFC 264 earlier this month. It wasn’t the most exciting fight in the world, and UFC president Dana White later criticized Burns for his grappling-heavy approach to the fight. Still, the Brazilian did what he needed to do to win the fight and to nullify the striking of Thompson, widely considered one of the best standup fighters in the UFC. But if you ask Thompson, the reason why Burns was so content to holding him down is that he was scared of his striking attacks.
Patricio Pitbull sends a warning about respect to AJ McKee ahead of Bellator 263
Adam D Martin - July 30, 2021
Bellator featherweight champion Patricio Pitbull sent a warning about respect to his upcoming opponent AJ McKee ahead of Bellator 263. Pitbull, the Bellator 145lbs and 155lbs champion, steps into the cage on Saturday night in Los Angeles against McKee in the finals of the Bellator Featherweight World Grand Prix. Pitbull has won seven straight fights heading into this finale, while McKee is undefeated with a 17-0 record in Bellator and in MMA. The son of former UFC fighter Antonio McKee is confident that he can beat Pitbull, and at the press conference ahead of the fight, he told the Brazilian that he would beat him up in front of his wife and kids. Pitbull did not take kindly to the comments and they got into an altercation afterwards, which he explained.
Uriah Hall hoping for future UFC title fight against Israel Adesanya: "I think my style is perfectly matched up for him"
Adam D Martin - July 30, 2021
Uriah Hall is hoping for a future UFC title fight against Israel Adesanya, saying that “I think my style is perfectly matched up for him.” Hall takes on Sean Strickland in the main event of UFC Vegas 33 this Saturday night in a battle of top-15 ranked middleweights. Both Hall and Strickland are riding four-fight win streaks into this fight, so the winner will assuredly be in line for a top-ranked opponent should they win in an impressive fashion. For both Hall and Strickland, the goal is to keep getting their hands raised and eventually get to a title shot against the middleweight champion Adesanya. For Hall, beating Strickland would give him five straight wins at 185lbs, and after beating Anderson Silva and Chris Weidman previously, he is hoping that a big win over Strickland will springboard him to near the top of the middleweight division.
Jose Aldo vs. Pedro Munhoz promoted to co-main event of UFC 265
Adam D Martin - July 30, 2021
An exciting bantamweight bout between Jose Aldo and Pedro Munhoz has been promoted to the new co-main event spot at UFC 265. Aldo and Munhoz were previously scheduled to meet in a main card battle, but now that UFC women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes and Julianna Pena had to be pulled from the card, this intriguing matchup between elite bantamweights has been promoted to the co-main event of UFC 265. TSN’s Aaron Bronsteter was the first to reveal the news.
Amanda Nunes issues statement after withdrawing from Julianna Pena title fight at UFC 265
Adam D Martin - July 30, 2021
UFC women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes issued a statement after withdrawing from the Julianna Pena title fight at UFC 265. Nunes tested positive for COVID-19 and her 135lbs title fight against Pena — which was scheduled to take place next Saturday night at UFC 265 in Houston, Texas — had to be canceled. The UFC’s plan is to keep this title fight intact and book it for later this year once Nunes is healthy again. It’s unfortunate that Nunes and Pena had to have been taken off the card, but sadly, this is unlikely to be the only COVID-19 withdrawal coming up given how many people around the world are still dealing with the coronavirus and its variants.