MMA News
Dana White reveals official UFC fight cards for May 13 and May 16 events
Chris Taylor - May 1, 2020
Dana White and the Ultimate Fighting Championship are gearing up for a return to action next weekend with UFC 249 set to take place on May 9 in Florida. The promotion is hoping to make up for multiple postponed events by holding three fight cards in just eight days. In addition to UFC 249 on May 9, the organization is also planning to hold events in Jacksonville, Florida on May 13 and May 16.
Douglas Lima believes he could KO Kamaru Usman and "it wouldn’t take much either"
Cole Shelton - May 1, 2020
Douglas Lima hopes he and Kamaru Usman will fight each other one day. Currently, Lima is Bellator’s welterweight champion while Usman is the UFC’s 170-pound champion. Although a fight between them seems unlikely due to the lack of cross-promotional interest by Dana White, Lima hopes it can happen one day, but he isn’t holding his breath.
Paige VanZant, Austin Vanderford explain why they started posing naked on Instagram
Tom Taylor - May 1, 2020
Paige VanZant and Austin Vanderford — possibly MMA’s most famous husband and wife duo — have recently been having some fun on their Instagram accounts. The kind of fun that doesn’t involve clothes. Speaking to MMA Fighting recently, VanZant and Vanderford opened up on how this playful series of photos came about.
Israel Adesanya shares advice for young fighters: "Don't be fake like Jon Jones"
Adam Martin - May 1, 2020
UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is one of the biggest stars in mixed martial arts today, and many up-and-coming fighters are bound to try to emulate his success. Speaking on the latest episode of BJPENN.COM Radio, Adesanya shared some advice for young fighters that seek to follow in his footsteps.
Jack Hermansson says UFC still wants him to fight Chris Weidman
Adam Martin - May 1, 2020
Middleweight contender Jack Hermansson says the UFC still wants him to fight Chris Weidman after their fight for UFC Oklahoma City was canceled. Hermansson was set to fight Weidman in the main event of the Oklahoma City card that was eventually canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, the bigger problem is that Hermansson is from Europe and there are travel restrictions right now to get him to the United States. The UFC was already looking at alternate opponents for Weidman, including matchups against Yoel Romero and Edmen Shahbazyan.
Khabib Nurmagomedov had "the best training camp" for UFC 249
Tom Taylor - May 1, 2020
UFC lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov says his training camp for his nixed UFC 249 fight with Tony Ferguson was among the best he’s ever had. Nurmagomedov was originally expected to defend his title against Ferguson in the main event of UFC 249 card on April 18. Unfortunately, amid growing travel restrictions associated with the coronavirus pandemic, the champ wound up getting stuck in his native Russia, unable to depart for his fight with Ferguson. This marks the fifth time a planned bout between the pair has fallen through.
Tyron Woodley explains why he's confident he'd beat Israel Adesanya
Tom Taylor - May 1, 2020
It’s no secret that former UFC welterweight champ Tyron Woodley has some issues with UFC middleweight champ Israel Adesanya. During a recent episode his Hollywood Beatdown show on TMZ Sports, Woodley fired another verbal volley at Adesanya, and also explained why he believes he’d defeat the middleweight champ in a fight.
Pearl Gonzalez fires back after Curtis Blaydes criticizes female fighters
Tom Taylor - May 1, 2020
Pearl Gonzalez has some choice words for her fellow Chicagoan, top UFC heavyweight contender Curtis Blaydes. On Thursday, Blaydes drummed up some controversy by suggesting that some female fighters are given preferential treatment based on their looks, rather than their athletic accomplishments.
Marvin Vettori will be “pissed” if negative media helps screw over another UFC event
Harry Kettle - May 1, 2020
UFC middleweight Marvin Vettori believes the media will be the ones to blame if the upcoming string of UFC events do not go ahead as planned. Vettori, who is riding a two-fight win streak following his loss to Israel Adesanya back in April 2018, is considered to be one of the rising stars in the middleweight division. However, he hasn’t been able to get back into the Octagon since October after he had two fights, against Darren Stewart and Karl Roberson, called off due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
UFC star Conor McGregor delivers medical supplies to children’s hospital in Ireland
Harry Kettle - May 1, 2020
UFC star Conor McGregor continues to assist his local area during the COVID-19 pandemic after delivering medical supplies to a children’s hospital in Crumlin. While there have been more than a few negative stories in the world of mixed martial arts over the course of the last few months, it appears as if McGregor is ready to swoop in and become the hero none of us knew we needed.
UFC releases new fight week safety protocol for athletes competing during pandemic
Natasha Hooper - May 1, 2020
The UFC has announced its new protocol to ensure the safety of fighters for its three upcoming cards on May 9, 13, and 16. The promotion intends on hosting a trifecta of fighting events this month in Jacksonville, Florida. The first event will be UFC 249 on May 9, which had previously been postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Curtis Blaydes believes certain UFC stars receive preferential treatment based on "looks" instead of "athletic achievements"
Natasha Hooper - May 1, 2020
Curtis Blaydes takes issue with bikini-clad UFC fighters who receive preferential treatment based on their looks instead of fighting skills. The UFC heavyweight contender shared his frustrations in a social media post this week. “Razor” criticized female MMA fighters who are heavily promoted based on their looks.
Douglas Lima "disappointed" Rory MacDonald left Bellator but hopes trilogy happens down the line
Cole Shelton - April 30, 2020
Douglas Lima says he’s disappointed Rory MacDonald left Bellator as it ruined plans for a trilogy fight. MacDonald is the former Bellator welterweight champion but after losing his belt to Lima in the grand prix final, he left in free agency to PFL. Many were surprised as they figured the Canadian would re-sign to set up the trilogy with Lima, which the Brazilian thought would be the case.
Brendan Loughnane opens up on PFL, lockdown & staying in shape
Harry Kettle - April 30, 2020
PFL star Brendan Loughnane opens up on everything from his signing with the promotion to life in quarantine and beyond in this exclusive with BJPENN.com. Loughnane has largely been viewed as one of the most underrated British talents for many years now, with most fans believing that he has long since deserved a chance at proving himself in the Ultimate Fighting Championship once again.
Johny Hendricks explains how USADA played a role in his retirement from MMA
Cole Shelton - April 30, 2020
Johny Hendricks never failed a USADA test or took any performance-enhancing drugs in his career. But, he does say USADA played a big factor in why he retired in 2018. Hendricks claimed UFC gold back at UFC 171 where he defeated Robbie Lawler to win the vacant belt. He would then lose the title to Lawler in his next fight and USADA would be soon introduced afterward.
Stipe Miocic says there's “no way” he would accept a fight during the COVID-19 pandemic
Cole Shelton - April 30, 2020
Stipe Miocic makes it clear he won’t be defending his heavyweight title anytime soon. Miocic re-claimed the heavyweight title back at UFC 241 where he scored a fourth-round TKO win over Daniel Cormier. Since then, he has been healing up his eye injury. But, as his eye is healing the champ isn’t sure when he will fight again as he says he won’t do so while the pandemic is happening.
BJJ with BJ: Go to the Back Transition Drill
Jason Kindschy - April 30, 2020
[brid autoplay=”true” video=”531901″ player=”20625″ title=”BJJ with BJ Go To Back Transition Drill” duration=”25″ description=”BJ Penn demonstrates back and forth back transitions” uploaddate=”2020-03-18 18:40:18″ thumbnailurl=”https://cdn.brid.tv/live/partners/15717/thumb/531901_t_1584556840.png” contentUrl=”https://cdn.brid.tv/live/partners/15717/sd/531901.mp4″”] In this segment of BJJ with BJ, “The Prodigy” shows a drill for transitioning to an opponents back.
Duke Roufus: "I'm seeing the best Anthony Pettis that I've seen in a while"
Mike Pendleton - April 30, 2020
As he looks to get off his current two-fight losing skid, former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis is impressing those around him. Pettis is scheduled to fight Donald Cerrone in the featured prelim at UFC 249 which is scheduled for May 9 on ESPN and ESPN+ PPV. Coming off back-to-back losses against Diego Ferreira and Nate Diaz, Pettis has shown signs of his old self according to those around him. In a recent interview with MMA Tonight on Sirius XM’s Fight Nation, Pettis’ head coach Duke Roufus said although this is a rematch that Pettis won the first time, there is a new opportunity for Pettis to shine under the circumstances.