MMA News

Andrew Whitelaw - June 28, 2021

As coach of arguably the greatest mixed martial artist of all-time, Firas Zahabi is well-placed to judge what makes a good fighter. In this case, the Canadian heaped praise on the resilience of Nate Diaz. Speaking in a Q&A on the Tristar Gym YouTube channel, Zahabi said,

Chris Taylor - June 28, 2021

Derrick Lewis and Ciryl Gane have reacted after being booked in a interim heavyweight title fight at UFC 265. After weeks of Dana White insinuating that a rematch with ‘The Black Beast’ would be next for reigning UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, the promotion shocked fight fans today with the announcement of Lewis vs. Gane.

Cole Shelton - June 28, 2021

Khabib Nurmagomedov has given his prediction for the trilogy bout between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier. McGregor and Poirier fought back in January where Poirier exacted his revenge with a second-round TKO win over the Irishman. After the fight, both men called for the trilogy and it will headline UFC 264 from the T-Mobile Arena on July 10. According to Nurmagomedov, who fought and beat both of them, believes if McGregor can’t finish Poirier in the first round he will lose the fight.

Cole Shelton - June 28, 2021

Ciryl Gane has opened as a sizeable favorite over Derrick Lewis for the interim heavyweight title. The hope for the UFC was to have Ngannou defend his heavyweight title for the first time at UFC 265 on August 7 against Lewis. Yet, the timing didn’t work so the promotion went to an interim belt between Gane and Lewis and the undefeated Frenchman has opened as a sizeable favorite.

Cole Shelton - June 28, 2021

Derrick Lewis will be fighting for UFC gold on August 7 in Houston, it just won’t be for the undisputed belt. Lewis was reportedly set to face Francis Ngannou in the main event of UFC 265 for the heavyweight title. Yet, the promotion couldn’t come to terms with Ngannou on the timeframe and now the UFC is set for an interim title. According to UFC president, Dana White, who told ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, Lewis will face Ciryl Gane for the interim heavyweight title in the main event of UFC 265.

Adam D Martin - June 28, 2021

Former Bellator fighter and GLORY kickboxer Joe Schilling brutally knocked out a patron at a bar in a video going viral on social media. The video of Schilling knocking a man out has been making the rounds. Watch the video below and see what you think for yourself. In the video, it appears as though Schilling and a man bump into each other, the man says something, then he gets knocked out cold.

Adam D Martin - June 28, 2021

UFC heavyweight contender Ben Rothwell roasted a fan on social media after being criticized for having “haymakers and jiggling tits.” Rothwell is coming off of a second-round submission win over Chris Barnett in his last outing, and he has won three of his last four fights overall. The 39-year-old American has been on the UFC roster since 2009 and is known as being one of the most durable and tough fighters in the UFC heavyweight division. He’s called “Big Ben” due to his massive size — 6’4″ and 265lbs — not to mention his trademark knockout power. But while those attributes have helped Rothwell achieve a long and successful career in mixed martial arts, apparently what he’s doing isn’t good enough for one particular fan who went after him.

Adam D Martin - June 28, 2021

UFC welterweight Warlley Alves reacted after his upset KO loss to Jeremiah Wells at UFC Vegas 30, saying that “I have no excuses.” Alves was knocked out by Wells in the second round of their welterweight fight that took place on the UFC Vegas 30 preliminary card. For Alves, it was a shocking defeat to a fighter who was making his UFC debut on short notice in Wells. The veteran Brazilian entered the fight as the betting favorite to get his hand raised, but he was brutally knocked out in the second round by his powerful opponent. For Alves, it was yet another tough loss for him in the Octagon. While Alves is a solid 8-5 overall in the UFC, he is just 2-3 in his last five fights and he was knocked out or submitted in all three of those recent losses he’s had.

Cole Shelton - June 28, 2021

In the main event of UFC Vegas 30, Ciryl Gane put his undefeated record on the line in his toughest test to date against the perennial contender, Alexander Volkov. Gane entered the fight coming off his first main event where he won a lackluster decision over Jairzinho Rozenstruik. Volkov, meanwhile, was riding back-to-back TKO wins over Alistair Overeem and Walt Harris.

Adam D Martin - June 28, 2021

Heavyweight legend Fedor Emelianenko could fight Josh Barnett, Junior dos Santos, or Alistair Overeem, says Bellator president Scott Coker. It was revealed last week that Emelianenko will be returning to action on October 23 when he headlines Bellator’s first-ever event in Moscow, Russia. Although “The Last Emperor” is now 44 years old — and he will be 45 by the next time he fights — he is still one of the most accomplished and respected mixed martial artists of all time, and anytime he fights, it’s a big deal. Although Emelianenko will return to the cage this fall, we do not know his opponent yet. However, we now have an idea of who could potentially be for him next.

Adam D Martin - June 28, 2021

Diego Sanchez says he is interested in bare-knuckle boxing for BKFC, adding that he “never really liked the gloves in the UFC anyway.” Sanchez was the longest-tenured fighter on the UFC roster until he was released following a dispute with the promotion and his former manager Joshua Fabia. Sanchez eventually fired Fabia and there is still a slight crack in the door for him to potentially fight in the UFC again, but at this moment he is a free agent and has been shopping around his services since he was cut by UFC president Dana White. So far, we haven’t heard of Sanchez officially signing with any promotion, but it appears there could be a frontrunner for them.

Adam D Martin - June 28, 2021

UFC lightweight prospect Terrance McKinney shared a motivational story with UFC fans following his record-setting debut earlier this month. McKinney knocked out Matt Frevola with a 1-2 combination just seven seconds into their UFC 263 preliminary card lightweight bout. For McKinney, he was making his UFC debut on short notice after a fight in LFA the week before. He turned out to have one of the best UFC debuts of all time as he set the record for the fastest KO in UFC lightweight history. But for McKinney, just the fact that he’s made it all the way to the UFC is an accomplishment itself.

Adam Martin - June 27, 2021

The upcoming 205lbs title fight between champion Jan Blachowicz and Glover Teixeira has been delayed and now headlines UFC 267 in Abu Dhabi. Blachowicz vs. Teixeira was originally set to take place at UFC 266 on September 5, and then the fight was later shifted to September 26. However, the fight has now been delayed yet again. Instead of taking place at UFC 266 as originally intended, the fight will now take place at UFC 267, which is set for October 30 on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi. AG Fight was the first to confirm the news that the Blachowicz vs. Teixeira bout has been shifted.

Adam Martin - June 27, 2021

UFC heavyweight Tanner Boser fired back at the “dummies” accusing him of fence grabbing against Ovince Saint Preux at UFC Vegas 30. Boser fought OSP in the co-main event of Saturday’s UFC Vegas 30 card. The Canadian won the first round with his striking and appeared to be in control of the fight, but OSP landed a body lock clinch takedown in the second round and appeared to be going to work on the ground. However, Boser was able to stand back up to his feet and land the knockout blow on OSP soon after. UFC commentator Daniel Cormier said that Boser grabbed the fence, but replays showed it was inconclusive and that it was more than likely Boser using his knuckles to push off the fence, which is legal since he didn’t have his fingers through them. Either way, OSP said he plans on filing an appeal regarding the result of the fight.

Adam Martin - June 27, 2021

UFC women’s bantamweight Julia Avila was confused by her 50k bonus snub after UFC Vegas 30: “I don’t know what else to do to get that bonus.” Avila submitted Julija Stoliarenko late in the third round with a rear-naked choke to pick up her third win in the UFC in what was a back-and-forth fight between two very durable and talented fighters. Avila is now 3-1 overall in the UFC and is one of the top-15 ranked flyweights in the promotion. However, despite finishing Stoliarenko in devastating fashion in a fight that the judges actually had tied up leading into the third round, “Raging Panda” was once again not given a bonus for her finish, just as she wasn’t last year when she knocked out Gina Mazany in 22 seconds. At this point, Avila says she doesn’t know what she has to do in order to get a bonus, because she was not one of the lucky 50k recipients.

Adam Martin - June 27, 2021

Justin Jaynes says he has “no regrets” about losing his bet, while also saying fans have been sending him nasty messages after UFC Vegas 30. Jaynes made headlines this week when he announced he was betting his entire $25,000 fight purse on himself against Rosa. For Jaynes, it was a must-win fight after losing his last three fights in a row following a TKO win over Frank Camacho in his UFC debut a year ago. However, while Jaynes fought tooth-and-nail for 15 minutes against Rosa, he came up just short as he ended up losing a split decision, with scores of 30-27, 28-29, and 29-28.

Adam Martin - June 27, 2021

UFC heavyweight Alexander Volkov reacted after losing a decision to Ciryl Gane at UFC Vegas 30, saying “I have a lot to grow and work on.” Volkov lost a unanimous decision to Gane in the main event of Saturday’s UFC Vegas 30 event. Although the striking statistics saw Gane officially only outland Volkov 135 to 115 in significant strikes, the Frenchman won a very wide decision on the judges’ scorecards, with the three cage-side judges scoring the bout 50-45, 50-45, and 49-46 in favor of Gane.

Adam Martin - June 27, 2021

UFC bantamweight Timur Valiev reacted after receiving his first-ever UFC bonus, saying that he plans to buy a house for his mother. Valiev won a majority decision over Barcelos in a wild, back-and-forth fight that saw the Russian and the Brazilain take home “Fight of the Night” for their all-out war. Valiev took the first round with more volume on the feet, but Barcelos dropped him twice in the second round and appeared to be on his way to knocking Valiev out, though he somehow made it to the end of the round. At that point, Barcelos had expended most of the gas in his tank, and Valiev was able to outstrike Barcelos in the third round to win a majority decision.