MMA News

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.

Adam D Martin - June 10, 2021

UFC color commentator Joe Rogan praised of Jake Paul, saying that “Jake throws things straight and hard.” Paul takes on former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley on August 28 in a professional boxing match. Paul is coming off of a huge TKO win over Ben Askren which earned him this big opportunity against Woodley, who was recently released from the UFC following the end of his last contract. Paul vs. Woodley is expected to be one of the biggest combat sports events of the summer and it should be a very exciting fight regardless of what happens. And if you ask Rogan, it’s going to be a very competitive boxing match.

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.

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

UFC welterweight Santiago Ponzinibbio is back in the top-15 rankings at welterweight, while Robbie Lawler and Khamzat Chimaev were removed. Ponzinibbio defeated Miguel Baeza at UFC Vegas 28 via unanimous decision in a “Fight of the Night” performance by both men. It was an incredible fight, and Ponzinibbio is now being rewarded with a top-15 ranking once again. He has in fact re-entered the welterweight rankings at No. 13, and Muslim Salikhov broke into the top-15 at No. 15 following his unanimous decision win over Francisco Trinaldo last weekend as well.

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.

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.

Harry Kettle - June 10, 2021

UFC legend Georges St-Pierre has been honored in his hometown of Saint-Isidore with ‘Place GSP’ – a statue tribute to his career. A few years on from his official retirement from mixed martial arts, St-Pierre has had a statue unveiled that he hopes will continue to inspire the next generation of fighters.

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.

Cole Shelton - June 9, 2021

Sean O’Malley has a lot of respect for Logan and Jake Paul. O’Malley a rising bantamweight star and says he wants to be known for his entertainment. With that, he says he likes what the Paul brothers are doing as they are massive entertainers who are now taking over the combat sports world.

Cole Shelton - June 9, 2021

Check out the complete betting odds for this Saturday’s UFC 263 card featuring Israel Adesanya defending his middleweight title against Marvin Vettori. The UFC 263 main event sees Adesanya and Vettori have their highly-anticipated rematch in the same arena they fought in back in 2018. In the first bout, they fought to a split decision where Adesanya won it. Since then, “The Last Stylebender” became the champ but is coming off his first career loss as he dropped a decision to Jan Blachowicz for the light heavyweight belt. He also holds notable wins over Robert Whittaker, Paulo Costa, and Anderson Silva. Vettori, meanwhile, is undefeated since losing to Adesanya and is coming off back-to-back main events where he beat Kevin Holland and Jack Hermansson, both by decision.

Adam D Martin - June 9, 2021

UFC middleweight Jared Cannonier understands why divisional rival Paulo Costa withdrew from their fight, saying that “I can’t hate on him.” Cannonier and Costa were expected to fight this summer in a high-profile middleweight bout that could have seen the winner get close to a title shot at 185lbs. However, Costa pulled out of the fight, and he later went on a rant about fighter pay in the UFC, which company president Dana White responded to in a negative fashion. While Costa pulled out and left Cannonier without an opponent, his rival can’t hate on him. In fact, Cannonier has a lot of respect for what Costa is doing by sticking to his guns.

Adam D Martin - June 9, 2021

UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya and rival Marvin Vettori exchanged words following their run-in at the UFC 263 fighter hotel. Adesanya and Vettori meet in the main event of UFC 263 this Saturday night in a rematch. The two previously met in April 2018, with Adesanya winning a split decision. They now meet again three years later, only this time with Adesanya’s gold on the line. Before their big fight this weekend, Adesanya and Vettori ran into each other at the UFC fighter hotel ahead of the card. Check out how the interaction between the bitter rivals went.

Cole Shelton - June 9, 2021

In the co-main event of UFC 263, Deiveson Figueiredo looks to defend his flyweight title as he rematches Brandon Moreno. Heading into the fight, Figueiredo is a -230 favorite while the challenger is a +185 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. The majority believe it will be Figueiredo defending his belt this time around.

Adam D Martin - June 9, 2021

Former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis has been pulled from Thursday’s PFL 4 card due to illness, and will now fight at PFL 6 instead. Pettis was set to fight Alex Martinez in his second regular-season fight for PFL after losing a unanimous decision to Clay Collard in his promotional debut in April. However, AG Fight is now reporting that Pettis is out of the fight due to illness. Instead, defending PFL lightweight champion Natan Schulte will now fight Pettis’ opponent Martinez on Thursday night, and Pettis will return on June 25 when he takes on Schulte’s opponent Raush Manfio.