MMA News

Adam Martin - July 4, 2021

Former UFC title contender Nate Marquardt announced his return to MMA, and “The Great” is set to compete for Titan FC later this summer. Marquardt announced this weekend at Titan FC 70 that he is set to return to mixed martial arts on August 6 when he fights at middleweight for the Titan promotion. “The Great” is now 42 years old and he hasn’t fought since a close split decision loss to Cezar Ferreira in November 2017. Marquardt mentioned back in November 2019 that he was considering a comeback and confirmed he was talking to Bellator. Nearly two years later and it appears as though Marquardt is finally able to get back into the cage, only this time for Titan FC.

Adam Martin - July 4, 2021

Lauren Murphy explained how she can dethrone UFC women’s flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko if she gets the next title shot at 125lbs. Murphy is currently the No. 3 ranked contender in the women’s flyweight division and she seems poised to be the next title challenger for the champion Shevchenko. With Murphy coming off of five straight wins, including a decision over Joanne Calderwood at UFC 263 that seemingly earned her the right to fight Shevchenko next, “Lucky” is hoping that the UFC matchmakers do the right thing and reward her long win streak with a title shot.

Adam Martin - July 4, 2021

UFC bantamweight contender Merab Dvalishvili confirmed that he is considering a move to the UFC flyweight division in the near future. Dvalishvili is currently the No. 10 ranked bantamweight in the UFC. The 30-year-old Georgia native is 13-4 in his MMA career, including a 6-2 record in the Octagon. “The Machine” has won his last six fights in a row and is quickly emerging as a title contender at 135lbs, where the belt is currently held by Dvalishvili’s teammate Aljamain Sterling. Following a win over Cody Stamann in his last fight, Dvalishvili next faces off against the No. 6 ranked contender Marlon Moraes at UFC 266, and a win would be huge for him.

Adam Martin - July 4, 2021

UFC welterweight contender Stephen Thompson showed off his incredible physical transformation during his UFC 264 training camp. Thompson steps back into the Octagon next Saturday when he faces off against Gilbert Burns in the co-main event of the UFC 264 pay-per-view. “Wonderboy” has made it clear that he wants to fight UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman next, and a big win over Burns would certainly put him in the title conversation at 170lbs. Based on the photos we are seeing from his training camp, it appears that Thompson has left no stone unturned.

Adam D Martin - July 4, 2021

Ciryl Gane says that he doesn’t feel bad for Francis Ngannou that an interim UFC heavyweight title was created for him and Derrick Lewis. Ngannou was fully expected to fight Lewis in the main event of UFC 265 in August, but the UFC did an about-face this week and created an interim title fight between Lewis and Gane for the event instead. According to the UFC, Ngannou wasn’t able to fight in August and the promotion already had an event booked in Houston, Texas, and needed Lewis to fight on the card. With Gane coming off of a great win over Alexander Volkov in a fight where he didn’t absorb much damage, the UFC matchmakers called up Gane to quickly turn around and fight Lewis for the interim belt. Of course, Gane said yes right away to the fight.

Adam D Martin - July 4, 2021

UFC welterweight contender Michael Chiesa blasted “sh*t human being” Colby Covington, saying that “he’s just sitting on the sidelines.” Chiesa takes on Vicente Luque at UFC 265 in August in a battle between top-10 contenders at 170lbs. UFC president Dana White has already confirmed that Covington is next in line to fight champion Kamaru Usman for the belt next, but if you ask Chiesa, Covington has no business fighting for the title when there are several other title contenders out there.

Adam D Martin - July 4, 2021

Hector Lombard on fighting Jake Paul in bare-knuckle boxing: “I don’t think he’s ever going to have the balls to fight bare-knuckle.” Lombard, who is the BKFC middleweight champion, recently took to his social media to offer a challenge to Paul, the YouTuber-turned boxer, to fight him in bare-knuckle boxing. We haven’t heard back from Paul yet on the offer and it seems doubtful that we will hear from him about this, considering that he is already busy preparing for his boxing match this summer with Tyron Woodley. And as much as Lombard is a recognizable name in the world of combat sports, he likely doesn’t have the name value that Paul wants in an opponent.

Adam D Martin - July 4, 2021

Dustin Poirier explained his rationale behind choosing the Conor McGregor trilogy over competing in the UFC lightweight title fight instead. Poirier knocked out McGregor at UFC 257 earlier this year to become the de facto No. 1 contender at 155lbs. When UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov decided to vacate his belt and retire, the original plan was to have Poirier fight Charles Oliveira for the vacant lightweight title. Instead, Poirier chose to fight McGregor for the third time, which led to Oliveira fighting Michael Chandler in the main event of UFC 262 and winning the belt.

Adam D Martin - July 4, 2021

Former UFC champion Eddie Alvarez shared his prediction for the upcoming trilogy fight between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier at UFC 264. McGregor and Poirier square off next Saturday night in the main event of UFC 264, which takes place on July 10 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ahead of next weekend’s blockbuster pay-per-view card, Alvarez was asked who he thinks will win this megafight between two of his former rivals. Alvarez, of course, fought Poirier twice in the UFC and McGregor once, so he knows these two as well as anyone. Speaking to Helen Yee, “The Underground King” shared his prediction for the upcoming McGregor vs. Poirier trilogy.

Chris Taylor - July 3, 2021

Kevin Lee has shared his prediction for McGregor vs. Poirier 3, this while adding that neither man possesses the complete game needed to beat Charles Oliveira. McGregor (22-5 MMA) and Poirier (27-6 MMA) are set to collide for a third time on July 10, this after splitting their first two encounters.

Chris Taylor - July 3, 2021

Former UFC title challenger John Dodson has provided an update after he and his family were involved in a near-death automobile accident. Dodson (21-12 MMA), who was let go by the UFC shortly following his unanimous decision loss to Merab Dvalishvili in August of 2020, was set to make his return to the cage on July 30 at an XMMA event in Greenville, South Carolina.

Chris Taylor - July 3, 2021

Like many of us, a number of UFC fighters are out celebrating this Independence Day Weekend and utilizing social media to share their good vibes. While July 4 marks the official Federal Holiday for commemorating the Declaration of Independence of the United States, that didn’t stop many Americans from getting the jump on festivities.

Drake Riggs - July 3, 2021

Maryna Moroz didn’t hold back when recently speaking about her fellow UFC flyweight and former training partner, Mariya Agapova. In an hour-long interview with Russian media outlet MMA Herald, Moroz made multiple problematic claims.

Chris Taylor - July 3, 2021

Paulie Malignaggi has shared his prediction for next weekend’s highly anticipated trilogy fight between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier at UFC 264. McGregor (22-5 MMA) and Poirier (26-7 MMA) will collide in a rubber match on July 10, with the winner expected to be the first man to challenge newly crowned UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira.

Chris Taylor - July 3, 2021

Former two-time UFC flyweight title challenger John Dodson has been forced out of his comeback fight following a “near-death” accident involving his family. Dodson (21-12 MMA), who was let go by the UFC shortly following his unanimous decision loss to Merab Dvalishvili in August of 2020, was set to make his return to the cage on July 30 at an XMMA event in Greenville, South Carolina.

Chris Taylor - July 3, 2021

Robert Whittaker admits that he let his emotions get the best of him in his first fight with Israel Adesanya at UFC 243. Whittaker (23-5 MMA) and Adesanya (21-1 MMA) squared off for the promotions undisputed middleweight title in October of 2019, with ‘Stylebender’ emerging victorious by way of second round knockout.

Adam D Martin - July 2, 2021

Former UFC middleweight title contender and current analyst Chael Sonnen defended the UFC and its president Dana White over fighter pay. Fighter pay is a hot topic in the world of MMA today, as many fighters are looking for a bigger piece of the pie with the sport growing, and particularly with YouTubers such as Jake Paul showing how much money there really is out there. Paul has become a champion for fighter pay and was among those who donated to UFC women’s flyweight Sarah Alpar’s GoFundMe, which once again highlighted some of the issues with the UFC fighter pay.

Adam D Martin - July 2, 2021

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans explained why he is the perfect opponent for YouTuber-turned-boxer Logan Paul. Evans recently announced that he is returning to combat sports after spending the last several years away in retirement. “Suga” is planning on making his comeback in the boxing ring, and he has already zeroed in on Paul as a potential opponent. Paul is coming off of an exhibition bout with Floyd Mayweather and Evans would represent another big name on his resume if he is interested in the fight. Speaking to MMAFighting.com, Evans explained why he is the ideal opponent for Paul and why his opponent should sign on to fight him.