MMA News

Harry Kettle - May 4, 2020

Boxing promoter Bob Arum has voiced his displeasure regarding the UFC’s persistence in trying to go ahead with events in Florida during the pandemic. It’s no secret that Arum doesn’t exactly see eye to eye with UFC president Dana White, with the pair constantly going back and forth at one another over the years in one of the most notable rivalries between promoters in combat sports.

Natasha Hooper - May 4, 2020

TJ Dillashaw has predicted the outcome of the bantamweight title fight between Henry Cejudo and Dominick Cruz at UFC 249. The former bantamweight champion has been out of action since his anti-doping violation in 2019, but that hasn’t stopped the fighter from giving his two cents on the current 135-pound division.

Harry Kettle - May 4, 2020

Boxing promoter and former champion Oscar De La Hoya has praised former rival Dana White for his handling of the UFC during the pandemic. De La Hoya and White have been embroiled in a bitter feud for quite some time now, to the point where there was even talk that they could settle the score in the boxing ring. Alas, it appears as if the passing of time is starting to heal the wounds.

Adam Martin - May 3, 2020

Check out videos of the top five submissions from UFC 31 to UFC 40, featuring former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir in his UFC debut. In our latest series here at BJPenn.com “Top 5 Submissions” we take a look at the most lethal submissions from the fourth block of UFC events. These submissions all took place from 2001 to 2002, and they feature numerous future UFC Hall of Famers in their early days. Keep in mind there are many other submissions deserving of the list, but we had to choose just five.

Adam D Martin - May 3, 2020

UFC lightweight contender Kevin Lee announced that he had successful surgery on his ACL which he says he re-injured in the Charles Oliveira fight. Lee fought nearly two months ago at the last UFC event when he was tapped out by Oliveira in their headliner in Brasilia. Lee said after the fight that he was unsure when he would like to fight again after a disappointing performance following his insane head kick KO win over Gregor Gillespie back at UFC 244.

Adam D Martin - May 3, 2020

UFC fighters will be permitted to have a full corner of three cornermen at the upcoming UFC 249 card as well as the other three Jacksonville cards. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the UFC is following social distance guidelines which limit the number of people in a building at one time. Because of this, there was speculation that maybe each fighter would only be allowed to have one person in their corner at UFC 249 and the other upcoming UFC events in the United States.

Adam D Martin - May 3, 2020

Bellator welterweight champion Douglas Lima hopes his canceled vacant middleweight title fight against Gegard Mousasi is re-booked to take place in July. Lima was set to step up a weight class and take on one of the best in the world in Mousasi in the co-main event of Bellator 242. But Bellator decided to cancel that card, as well as the promotion’s other upcoming events, and the promotion is now looking to re-launch its shows starting in July. If that’s the case, then Lima wants on the card.

Adam D Martin - May 3, 2020

UFC middleweight contender Uriah Hall moved into the Fortis MMA gym for his training camp preparing to fight Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza at UFC 249. Hall was set to fight Souza at the original UFC 249 card on April 18 in Brooklyn and later at Tachi Palace, an event that was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. UFC 249 was eventually rescheduled for May 9 in Jacksonville and Hall vs. Souza is one of the featured preliminary bouts on ESPN. On paper, it’s one of the best fights on the card.

Adam D Martin - May 3, 2020

UFC lightweight contender Dustin Poirier says he has learned a lot during the longest layoff of his MMA career and admitted he won’t be fighting Nate Diaz. Poirier hasn’t stepped foot into the Octagon since getting submitted by UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 242 last September. “The Diamond” was set to fight Dan Hooker at UFC San Diego in two weeks from now, but that card was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Poirier has not had his fight with Hooker rescheduled and is currently in a holding pattern while awaiting his next opponent.

Adam D Martin - May 3, 2020

Dominick Reyes took a shot at his rival UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones, as the two exchanged barbs on social media once again. Reyes and Jones met in the main event of UFC 247 back in February. In one of the most contentious decisions of the year, Jones got his hand raised via unanimous decision to keep his belt even though many fans and media believed that Reyes did enough to win the fight. Not surprisingly, the two have been taking shots at each other over social media for the last few months since the fight went down.

Chris Taylor - May 2, 2020

Paulo Costa has some questions for Chael Sonnen following the former UFC middleweight title challengers recent praise of current division champion Israel Adesanya. Sonnen has boasted about Adesanya in recent weeks, even going as far as to suggest that ‘Stylebender’ would “whip” current UFC light heavyweight kingpin Jon Jones in a potential fight.

Chris Taylor - May 2, 2020

Former UFC middleweight champ Chris Weidman believes he could find similar success against Israel Adesanya as he did when fighting Anderson Silva. ‘The All American’ moved up to the promotions light heavyweight division for his last fight, but following a disappointing setback to Dominick Reyes, Weidman now plans or returning to the 185-pound division he once dominated.

Chris Taylor - May 2, 2020

Boxing legend Mike Tyson received some high praise from Joe Rogan and Khabib Nurmagomedov after showcasing his hand speed and power in a recent video. Earlier this week, the now 54-year-old ‘Iron Mike’ took to social media where he released the following video that left many viewers in complete shock.

Chris Taylor - May 2, 2020

The rivalry between Jon Jones and Israel Adesanya does not appear to be ending anytime soon as the UFC champions continue to trade verbal jabs at one another. Jones and Adesanya having been going back and forth at each other for months now, but their war of words seemed to hit new heights following ‘Bones’ recent arrest in New Mexico.

Chris Taylor - May 2, 2020

Former heavyweight title challenger Francis Ngannou will return to the Octagon at UFC 249 for a pivotal clash with Jairzinho Rozenstruik. The bout will mark Ngannou’s first appearance since June of 2019, where he scored a first round TKO victory over former title holder Junior dos Santos in Minneapolis.

Chris Taylor - May 2, 2020

Michael Bisping is not buying Paulie Malignaggi’s claim that he could still knockout UFC star Conor McGregor if they were to have a boxing match. Earlier this week in a interview with ESPN Ringside, Malignaggi guaranteed that he would stop McGregor in a proposed boxing match.

Cole Shelton - May 1, 2020

Jorge Masvidal may not be fighting Kamaru Usman next time out. Before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the sports world, Masvidal was expected to battle Usman for the welterweight title at International Fight Week in July. Yet, nothing was ever made official and now, that may no longer be the fight.

Chris Taylor - May 1, 2020

Former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley is looking to make his return to the Octagon later this month by competing on May 23. Woodley was originally slated to square off with Leon Edwards earlier this Spring in England. However, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the bout and the event were eventually both scrapped by the promotion.