MMA News

Cole Shelton - May 31, 2021

Jake Paul has his next boxing fight booked and he will face a former UFC champion in Tyron Woodley. After Paul knocked out Ben Askren in April, several MMA fighters and celebrities had called out the brash YouTuber. Woodley was among those calling for the fight and now according to The Athletic’s Mike Coppinger the fight is agreed to for a date not yet known.

Adam D Martin - May 31, 2021

UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo is confident he will finish Brandon Moreno at UFC 263, saying “I’m going to knock this guy out.” Figueiredo and Moreno meet in a rematch at next weekend’s UFC 263 with 125lbs gold on the line. The two rivals previously met at UFC 256 in December, with the pair fighting to a majority draw after a low blow cost Figueiredo one point on the judges’ scorecards. The hope is that the two will now be able to settle their differences at UFC 263 and the winner of the fight will prove beyond a doubt they are the best active flyweight on the UFC roster.

Cole Shelton - May 31, 2021

Sean Woodson is looking to remind UFC fans that he’s a problem in the featherweight division. Woodson came into the UFC at 6-0 after winning a flying knee KO over Terrance McKinney on the Contender Series. In his debut, he earned a decision win over Kyle Bochniak. In his second appearance, he took on short-notice replacement Julian Erosa. Early on, he had success but in the third round he lost by submission for his first career loss. Although it was disappointing, he says it was a good learning experience.

Cole Shelton - May 31, 2021

Montana De La Rosa knows she has a clear path to victory over Ariane Lipski on Saturday night at UFC Vegas 28. De La Rosa is making a quick turnaround after her draw against Mayra Bueno Silva in February. For the 26-year-old, she still thinks she won the fight but wanted a quick turnaround after the result.

Adam D Martin - May 31, 2021

UFC bantamweight Rob Font laid out his plan, which including fighting winner of TJ Dillashaw vs. Cory Sandhagen, then fighting for the belt. Font is coming off of the biggest win of his UFC career to date, a five-round unanimous decision victory over former champ Cody Garbrandt at UFC Vegas 27. With four wins in a row and a top-three ranking at 135lbs, Font knows that he is coming up on a title shot in the stacked UFC bantamweight division, and speaking to TMZ Sports, he laid out his plan.

Adam D Martin - May 31, 2021

Boxing superstar Teofimo Lopez praised UFC welterweight Jorge Masvidal, saying that he’s a big fan of the way “Gamebred” conducts himself. Lopez puts his lightweight belt on the line in June when he takes on George Kambosos Jr. With a 16-0 record as a professional boxer and coming off of an upset win over Vasyl Lomachenko, Lopez’s star has never been brighter. Ahead of his upcoming fight, Lopez was a guest on the “1, 2 with James and Kendrick” podcast and he was asked what he thinks about MMA fighters. Speaking to the hosts, Lopez was quick to point out that he’s a big fan of Masvidal, the UFC fighter who exploded into a true superstar over the last few years.

Adam D Martin - May 31, 2021

UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski believes COVID-19 symptoms may still be affecting cardio as he prepares for his next fight. Volkanovski is currently set to coach The Ultimate Fighter 29 opposite divisional rival Brian Ortega. The show begins airing on June 1, and the coaches’ fight is expected to happen this fall. However, it is worth noting that this fight was originally set to take place at UFC 260 in March. The fight didn’t end up happening because Volkanovski got COVID-19 and the fight had to be canceled, so the UFC went ahead and had the two coach TUF while he got better.

Adam D Martin - May 31, 2021

Brandon Moreno trashed UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo ahead of their UFC 263 rematch, saying that “man, the guy’s so ugly.” Moreno and Figueiredo met in the main event of UFC 256 last December for the 125lbs title. In one of the best fights of 2020, the Mexican Moreno and the Brazilian Figueiredo went toe-to-toe for the full 25 minutes, with the fight being scored a draw at the end of the five rounds after a point deduction to the champ for a low blow cost him the decision. The UFC decided that the fight was so good and so competitive that an immediate rematch was necessary, and the two will meet in the co-main event of UFC 263 on June 13 in Phoenix.

Adam Martin - May 30, 2021

The manager for UFC featherweight Zabit Magomedsharipov says he “will not return to the Octagon” until his health problems are resolved. Magomedsharipov was one of the top-five ranked featherweights on the UFC roster but he was taken out of the rankings earlier this year due to inactivity, as his last fight was a decision win over Calvin Kattar in November 2019. Since then, Magomedsharipov has been connected to numerous fights with rival Yair Rodriguez, but the fight never materialized due to COVID-19 logistical issues, injuries, and Rodriguez’s issues with USADA. It’s led to an extended layoff for Magomedsharipov, and he recently said he was considering retiring.

Adam Martin - May 30, 2021

UFC welterweight superstar Jorge Masvidal reacted after the first-ever Gamebred Fighting Championship event was officially announced. Masvidal last month announced that he would be launching Gamebred FC, which is a bare-knuckle MMA promotion. We have seen bare-knuckle fighting make a rise in popularity over the last few years with organizations such as BKFC at the forefront, but we haven’t seen a bare-knuckle MMA promotion really take off. With Masvidal leading the way, the hope is that this first Gamebred FC event is the first of many events for the UFC welterweight star.

Adam Martin - May 30, 2021

UFC women’s strawweight contender Marina Rodriguez explained why the proposed Mackenzie Dern fight isn’t happening in July as was expected. Rodriguez is coming off of a big win over Michelle Waterson in her last outing and beat Amanda Ribas by knockout before that, so she’s one of the hottest fighters at 115lbs right now. Similarly, Dern has been red hot as of late with a four-fight win streak including a submission over Nina Nunes in her last fight. With both Rodriguez and Dern ranked in the top-10 of the division, UFC president Dana White recently said that the promotion was planning on having these two women headline a UFC Fight Night card on July 21.

Adam Martin - May 30, 2021

UFC lightweight Gregor Gillespie is open to fighting Islam Makhachev fight down the road, suggesting the Russian could be ranked even higher. Gillespie is currently the No. 10 ranked lightweight in the UFC after going 7-1 overall in the promotion, including a stoppage win over Diego Ferreira that recently won him $100,000 in bonuses. One of the top grapplers in the UFC lightweight division, Gillespie is now looking for his next opponent, and one of the suggestions from fans has been Makhachev, who is ranked one spot ahead of Gillespie at No. 9 in the UFC. Makhachev is slated to fight Thiago Moises in July in his next fight, but Gillespie is keeping an eye on him for the future.

Adam D Martin - May 30, 2021

Former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov believes that former rival Dustin Poirier will be crowned the new champion within a year. Nurmagomedov was the best lightweight fighter in the sport before officially announcing his retirement from MMA earlier this year. As part of his retirement, Nurmagomedov vacated the UFC’s 155lbs belt, which Oliveira won when he knocked out Michael Chandler at UFC 262. Speaking to Sport 24, Nurmagomedov praised the new champion Oliveira for his victory, but cautioned that he won’t be champion for long. As far as “The Eagle” is concerned, Islam Makhachev and Dustin Poirier will take Oliveira’s belt from him.

Adam D Martin - May 30, 2021

UFC president Dana White explained why the upcoming Nate Diaz vs. Leon Edwards welterweight bout at UFC 263 was scheduled for five rounds. For the first time in UFC history, a fight other than a title bout or main event will be scheduled for 25 minutes when Diaz takes on Edwards on June 12 at UFC 263. The fight was originally slated as the co-main event for UFC 262 and was set for five rounds, but even after the fight was moved to UFC 263, which already has two five-round title fights set to take place, the fight between Edwards and Diaz was kept for the five rounds.

Adam D Martin - May 30, 2021

UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo sent a warning to Henry Cejudo and Demetrious Johnson, promising that he would finish them both. Figueiredo returns at UFC 263 next month when he takes on Brandon Moreno in a rematch for the UFC flyweight title. While his focus is solely on his opponent Moreno right now, Figueiredo can’t help but look forward should he get past his opponent. If that’s the case, then Figueiredo is hoping that he gets a fight with the former champ Cejduo at 135lbs.

Adam D Martin - May 30, 2021

UFC women’s strawweight contender Carla Esparza hopes the UFC gives her the next title shot against Rose Namajunas, saying “Come on Dana.” Esparza is coming off of an incredible TKO win over Yan Xiaonan at UFC Vegas 27 last weekend that was the statement she needed to make in order to earn a title shot with Namajunas. Esparza has now won her last five fights in a row, including notable victories over the likes of Marina Rodriguez and Michelle Waterson during that stretch, and she’s hoping that the win over Yan in such devastating fashion will earn her the next title shot.

Adam D Martin - May 30, 2021

UFC welterweight Colby Covington says that a potential matchup against George St-Pierre would have been an “extremely easy fight” for him. Covington is one of the best welterweight fighters in the UFC right now and GSP is, of course, one of the all-time greats ever in the 170lbs division. Although GSP is now 40 years old and retired, there have been rumors about him potentially fighting again for the last several years, with the most recent rumblings suggesting a matchup with former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov at a 165lbs catchweight.

Adam D Martin - May 30, 2021

Former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman shared a video of himself walking on his own for the first time since breaking his leg. Weidman suffered one of the most brutal injuries we’ve ever seen in the Octagon when he shattered his right leg on the first kick he threw against Uriah Hall at UFC 261 in April. Immediately after breaking his leg, Weidman was rushed to the hospital and he had surgery on his leg. It was a terrible injury for “The All-American” but he has been working hard during his rehab and recovery in order to not only walk again but return to the UFC.