MMA News

Adam D Martin - June 11, 2021

Marvin Vettori blasted “fake” Israel Adesanya ahead of their UFC 263 rematch, saying he’s excited “to beat his ass and get his belt.” Vettori and Adesanya meet on Saturday night in the main event of UFC 263 with Adesanya’s middleweight title on the line. Ahead of the fight, the two got into an altercation at the fighter hotel earlier this week. Speaking to TMZ Sports, Vettori shed more like on his run-in with Adesanya, explaining why the champ is “fake” for the cameras.

Adam D Martin - June 11, 2021

UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou is still holding out hope that he will fight Jon Jones next and not Derrick Lewis. Ngannou knocked out Stipe Miocic in March at UFC 260 to become the new heavyweight champion of the world. For his first title defense he was fully expected to fight Jones, but the UFC and Jones have not been able to come to terms on a new contract for this heavyweight superfight. With Jones temporarily out of the picture, UFC president Dana White has confirmed that Lewis will be next in line for a belt coming off of a KO win over Curtis Blaydes. The plan is for them to headline UFC 265 in August in Houston, Texas.

Harry Kettle - June 11, 2021

UFC welterweight contender Leon Edwards has questioned the logic of Colby Covington getting the next shot at Kamaru Usman. Ever since losing to Usman back in December 2015, Edwards has gone on a phenomenal run that saw him win eight fights in a row prior to his unfortunate no contest against Belal Muhammad. On the flip side, Covington bounced back from a brutal loss to Usman at UFC 245 with a TKO victory over rival Tyron Woodley.

Harry Kettle - June 11, 2021

Boxing star Claressa Shields made a successful debut in mixed martial arts with a TKO win at PFL 4 last night. There was a whole lot of speculation heading into last night’s event with regards to how Shields would look at this level. Some felt as if she’d blow through Brittney Elkin, who was 3-6 coming into the fight, but others recognised that having nine fights more than your opponent in MMA is always going to serve as a helping hand – even with a 3-6 record.

Cole Shelton - June 10, 2021

Nate Diaz says he feels like he’s fighting for the title on Saturday night at UFC 263. Diaz will return to the Octagon in a five-round welterweight scrap against Leon Edwards. It’s an intriguing matchup and one that was a surprise for many as Edwards isn’t the type of big name draw that Diaz is used to fighting. However, for the Stockton native, he says he wanted to fight the best fighter and that is what Edwards is.

Cole Shelton - June 10, 2021

Marvin Vettori believes he’s a much better fighter than Israel Adesanya. In the main event of UFC 263, Adesanya and Vettori will rematch in the same arena where they fought back in 2018 with ‘Stylebender’ winning a split decision. It was a close fight which makes the rematch intriguing and ahead of the scrap, Vettori wants it known that he is the much better fighter.

Cole Shelton - June 10, 2021

Israel Adesanya admits he wasn’t too interested in fighting Marvin Vettori again. Adesanya and Vettori fought back in 2018 with Adesanya winning a split decision win. Since then, Vettori claimed he won the scrap and was eager for the rematch. Now that they are set to meet in the main event of UFC 263 the rivalry between the two have gotten intense including a hotel run-in. Yet, according to “The Last Stylebender” he says Vettori wasn’t as loud as he was in person.

Adam D Martin - June 10, 2021

Former Ultimate Fighter winner Diego Sanchez says his fighting career is not over and he is now hinting at a future in the world of boxing. Sanchez was recently released by the UFC following a disagreement between his former coach/manager Joshua Fabia and the promotion regarding the release of medical documents. The UFC decided to let him go and paid off the final fight of his contract, which was supposed to be a welterweight bout against Donald Cerrone. Sanchez later severed ties with Fabia, but he is still technically a free agent now. There is still the possibility things could work out with the UFC now that Fabia is out of the picture, but more than likely it seems like Sanchez will have to go to another promotion, or perhaps another sport.

Cole Shelton - June 10, 2021

Steven Peterson asked for Chase Hooper and he got his wish. Back in January, Peterson revealed to BJPENN.com he was out of his February 6 fight against Seung Woo Choi due to an injury. However, during the interview, he called out Hooper, yet, he didn’t expect the UFC to give him that fight. But, he got his wish as he’ll face the grappling ace at UFC 263.

Cole Shelton - June 10, 2021

Matt Frevola had a crazy 2020 as he had three canceled fights due to COVID-19 and Frevola fracturing his foot. He was then set to return at UFC 257 but his 2021 also got off to a hectic start. Frevola was set to face Ottman Azaitar at UFC 257 in a highly-anticipated bout. However, on the day of weigh-ins, it was revealed Azaitar was out of the fight due to sneaking people into Fight Island. He ended up having to fight Arman Tsarukyan which he says is a fight he wants back.

Cole Shelton - June 10, 2021

In a very intriguing five-round welterweight bout at UFC 263, Leon Edwards welcomes back fan favorite Nate Diaz. Heading into the fight, Edwards is the biggest favorite on the card at -600 while the Stockton native is a +450 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. To no surprise, the majority believe Edwards will get his hand raised as many don’t see a path to victory for Diaz.

Adam D Martin - June 10, 2021

UFC welterweight superstar Nate Diaz posted a video of him heading to Arizona for UFC 263 along with the rest of his team the Skrap Pack. Diaz takes on Leon Edwards on the UFC 263 pay-per-view main card. It’s the first fight in UFC history that is a non-title, non-main event that is set for five rounds. Both Diaz and Edwards are two of the best in the game and this should be a very exciting fight. UFC president Dana White has already confirmed that the winner of the fight will get a future welterweight title shot after Colby Covington gets his against champion Kamaru Usman.

Adam D Martin - June 10, 2021

New UFC fighter Terrance McKinney shared his story of redemption after being tased by police while on acid and shrooms in the summer of 2015. McKinney takes on Matt Frevola on the UFC 263 undercard this Saturday night in Glendale, Arizona. For McKinney, he is taking the fight on short notice after Frank Camacho had to pull out due to injuries sustained in a car accident. “T.Wrecks” previously competed on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2019 and lost via flying knee KO to Sean Woodson. After going 3-1 on the regional scene, including back-to-back knockout wins in LFA, the UFC has brought McKinney into the fold and he will get his first Octagon taste against Frevola.

Adam D Martin - June 10, 2021

UFC president Dana White shot down the notion that 185lbs champ Israel Adesanya has cleaned out the middleweight division ahead of UFC 263. Adesanya returns back to the middleweight division this Saturday night when he takes on Marvin Vettori in a rematch that headlines UFC 263. Coming off of his first career loss to Jan Blachowicz at UFC 259, Adesanya is eager to get back into the Octagon and bounce back into the win column. Had he won the fight with Blachowicz, it’s likely that Adesanya would have given up his belt and continued to fight at the higher-weight class. But since he lost the fight, Adesanya is back down at 185lbs, and his first order of business is Vettori.

Adam D Martin - June 10, 2021

UFC light heavyweight contenders Jamahal Hill and Paul Craig got into a heated confrontation ahead of their fight at this weekend’s UFC 263. Craig is the No. 14 ranked light heavyweight in the UFC and Hill is ranked No. 15, so this is an important fight at 205lbs. The fight kicks off the pay-per-view portion of the UFC 263 card, but ahead of this weekend’s fight, the two rivals got into a heated confrontation at the UFC fighter hotel. Check out what Hill and Craig did when they ran into each other.

Harry Kettle - June 10, 2021

Vitor Belfort‘s son Davi Belfort has accepted an offer from Nick Saban to play football at the University of Alabama. The youngster has yet to even play a single snap at Cardinal Newman High School in West Palm Beach, Florida – but that hasn’t stopped Saban, head coach for the Alabama Crimson Tide since 2007, from taking a keen interest in him and what he’s able to do on the field.

Christopher Taylor - June 9, 2021

Nate Diaz shared a message for all of the fighters picking him to lose against Leon Edwards at UFC 263. Ahead of his highly anticipated welterweight collision with Edwards, ‘The Stockton Slugger’ was interviewed by ESPN. During the discussion, Diaz was asked to share his thoughts on so many of his colleagues are picking against him on Saturday and why they are wrong.

Cole Shelton - June 9, 2021

Floyd Mayweather vs. Logan Paul on Sunday night in Miami did well on pay-per-view. According to BoxingScene and confirmed by The Athletic, the Showtime PPV between the undefeated boxer in Mayweather and the YouTube and social media star in Paul did at least one million buys. Sources told both outlets that Showtime is projecting at least one million buys (or slightly more) domestically – which includes cable, satellite, and streaming.