MMA News

Cole Shelton - June 23, 2021

Khaos Williams was happy he got back into the win column on Saturday night at UFC Vegas 29. Williams broke onto the UFC scene with two sub-30 second KOs over Alex Morono and Abdul Razak Alhassan. In his third fight, he suffered a close decision loss to Michel Pereira, but on Saturday he earned a hard-fought decision win over Matt Semelsberger which Williams was happy about.

Adam D Martin - June 23, 2021

The rematch between UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou and rival Derrick Lewis has reportedly delayed until at least September. The UFC has been planning on having Ngannou and Lewis headline UFC 265, which is tentatively scheduled to take place on August 7 in Houston, Texas. However, it appears as though the promotion has run into a scheduling conflict and the fight between Ngannou and Lewis has now been delayed. According to MMA journalist Ariel Helwani, Ngannou vs. Lewis is a “long shot” to take place at UFC 265, and instead, September seems more likely.

Adam D Martin - June 23, 2021

Leon Edwards fired back at Gilbert Burns for suggesting he “wasn’t hungry” in the Nate Diaz fight, saying “you got knocked out with a jab.” Edwards won a unanimous decision over Diaz at UFC 263 earlier this month, but he wasn’t able to get the finish and nearly got stopped himself during a crazy fifth round of action. Although Edwards got his hand raised, UFC president Dana White stopped short of committing to giving him the next title shot despite being on a 10-fight unbeaten streak at the moment. White instead said that Colby Covington is next in line to fight UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. But one has to wonder if Edwards was able to go out there and finish Diaz if he would have been granted the title shot instead of Covington.

Adam D Martin - June 23, 2021

UFC welterweight Colby Covington slammed divisional rival Stephen Thompson, calling him a “joke” and saying “he should probably just retire.” Covington is set to face UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman in a rematch later this year for the 170lbs gold, but Thompson is hopeful that he will jump past Covington in the title queue with a win over Gilbert Burns at UFC 264 next month. As the highest-ranked fighter who hasn’t fought Usman yet, Thompson believes that a big win over Burns could help him jump past Covington and Leon Edwards when it comes to the title shot order.

Adam D Martin - June 23, 2021

Randy Couture says he is surprised Jake Paul is leading the charge on fighter pay reform in MMA, and he thinks Conor McGregor should have done more. Paul has been banging on the drum to get UFC fighters (and MMA fighters in general) paid more money, especially as he continues to roll in huge paydays in boxing. During a recent press conference, Paul went on an expletive-filled rant and said that UFC president Dana White should be paying his fighters more money, and saying “f*ck Dana White.”

Adam D Martin - June 23, 2021

UFC welterweight veteran Demian Maia praised Matt Brown following his recent callout for a rematch, suggesting that “the respect is mutual.” The 43-year-old Maia recently lost a unanimous decision to Belal Muhammad at UFC 263 and following the fight, UFC president Dana White hinted that could be the last time we see the legendary Brazilian inside the Octagon as Maia is one of the oldest fighters in the UFC and is on a two-fight losing skid. However, Maia has said that he wants to fight one more time before he hangs up his gloves for good, and he called out Nate Diaz for his final fight.

Adam D Martin - June 23, 2021

Boxer-turned-MMA fighter Claressa Shields returns to the PFL cage in August when she competes for the second time in mixed martial arts. Shields made her MMA debut earlier this month when she finished Brittany Elkin via third-round TKO for a successful first foray into mixed martial arts. It wasn’t an easy fight for Shields, who struggled with her takedown defense for the first two rounds of the fight as Elkin dominated her on the mat. However, Shields was able to conserve her gas tank, and when Elkin started to get tired in the third round of the fight, Shields started to unload massive ground and pound on her opponent and pick up the first win of her MMA career.

Harry Kettle - June 23, 2021

Nate Diaz has issued his response following a suggestion from Stephen Thompson that he should go back down to lightweight. It’s well known that “Wonderboy” is one of the nicest guys in mixed martial arts but beneath that exterior, he’s also one of the most dangerous welterweights on the planet – and he’s been proving that for years now.

Drake Riggs - June 22, 2021

Nick Diaz has once again teased a potential comeback. The elder Diaz brother hasn’t fought since his no-contest with Anderson Silva at UFC 183 in 2015. Now 37, Diaz has an idea of when he’d like to return, according to his coach – and it’s not guaranteed to be in the UFC or MMA.

Cole Shelton - June 22, 2021

Stephen Thompson believes Conor McGregor has what it takes to beat Dustin Poirier. In the main event of UFC 264, McGregor and Poirier will have their highly-anticipated trilogy bout. It’s an intriguing matchup, but many believe McGregor won’t have the ability to change everything he needs to do to beat Poirier. Yet, for Thompson, he thinks the Irishman has what it takes to win this fight as long as he goes back to his karate style and uses his movement.

Drake Riggs - June 22, 2021

Anthony Smith and Jon Jones have had a more heated rivalry after their UFC 235 clash than they did before it. Smith rebounded from his unanimous decision title loss to Jones with a fourth-round submission of Alexander Gustafsson. Afterward, Smith came up short in a wild affair with Glover Teixeira. This ultimately led to some shots being taken by Jones as Smith was a victim of a home invasion incident and didn’t take too kindly to the then champion’s comments.

Cole Shelton - June 22, 2021

Kamaru Usman has responded to Nate Diaz after his recent criticism. Diaz took to social media on Tuesday to blast the welterweight champ for only fighting opponents he already beat and knocked out. Usman was criticized for the rematch due to the fact he dominated Masvidal less than a year prior.

Adam D Martin - June 22, 2021

Stephen Thompson says he’s a “bad matchup” for UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman if the two ever end up fighting inside the Octagon. Thompson is the No. 4 ranked welterweight in the UFC and he returns to the cage this summer when he takes on Gilbert Burns in the co-main event of UFC 264 next month. Thompson has made it clear that he wants to fight for the belt should he get past Burns, and considering he’s the highest-ranked fighter who the champion hasn’t fought yet, there is certainly a good chance that “Wonderboy” could be fighting for the belt should he get past Burns in July. If Thompson gets his shot at Usman, he believes he can win the belt.

Adam D Martin - June 22, 2021

UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov reaffirmed his decision to retire, saying that “I have no desire to come back and I don’t think I ever will.” Nurmagomedov first revealed his intentions to step away from mixed martial arts following his submission win over Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 last October. That victory improved Nurmagomedov’s MMA record to a perfect 29-0, and UFC president Dana White was hoping the legend would come back for one final fight and try to make it an even 30-0. However, “The Eagle” decided that it was the right time to walk away and he vacated the UFC lightweight title and officially stepped away from the sport earlier this year.

Adam D Martin - June 22, 2021

UFC middleweight contender Sean Strickland trashed keyboard warriors following his much-publicized incident in training with Orlando Sanchez. Strickland, one of the top-15 ranked middleweights in the UFC, is currently training for his fight this summer against Uriah Hall. As part of his camp, he was working pummel drills with Sanchez, a BJJ world champion who attempted a standing armlock on Strickland. “Tarzan” was not happy about it and the video of him arguing with Sanchez went viral.

Cole Shelton - June 22, 2021

Artem Lobov is eager to face Denys Berinchyk on July 24. In the main event of Mahatch FC, Lobov will face the current undefeated WBO international lightweight champ boxer in Berinchyk. He’s also an Olympic silver medalist, winning the medal in 2012. His résumé speaks for itself which is why Lobov is excited about the fight.

Adam D Martin - June 22, 2021

Veteran Gleison Tibau vowed to knock Rory MacDonald out in a future PFL rematch, saying that “he already wanted the fight to be over.” Tibau won a highly controversial split decision over MacDonald in the main event of PFL 5. Most fans and media believed that MacDonald did enough to win the decision, but two of the three judges gave the split nod to Tibau instead. Some fans have suggested it’s one of the worst decisions they have ever seen, but if you ask Tibau, he’s confident he won.

Adam D Martin - June 22, 2021

UFC welterweight contender Gilbert Burns says that Leon Edwards “wasn’t hungry” enough against Nate Diaz to earn a title shot at 170lbs. Edwards won a unanimous decision over Diaz at UFC 263 earlier this month, but he was rocked badly in the fifth round of the fight and was nearly finished. Still, he got the win and now Edwards is on a 10-fight unbeaten streak. With that kind of a winning streak, there’s no surprise that Edwards is out there stumping for a title shot. But UFC president Dana White has already said that Colby Covington is next in line to fight UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, who defeated Burns earlier this year at UFC 258 by knockout.