MMA News
John McCarthy: 'Dana White should be kissing my a**' for 'some of the things that I did'
Natasha Hooper - March 5, 2020
Former referee Big John McCarthy believes Dana White owes him a thank you — maybe even some butt-kissing. McCarthy has been instrumental in overseeing MMA fights since the sport’s early days. He made his officiating debut in the UFC at the promotion’s second show, all the way back 1994. Since then, he has gone on to referee iconic bouts including Conor McGregor vs. Jose Aldo, the shortest title bout in UFC history.
UFC 248 betting odds: Champions Israel Adesanya and Weili Zhang expected to retain titles
Natasha Hooper - March 5, 2020
UFC 248 on Saturday, March 7 promises to be a night of high-level action. At the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, rising star Israel Adesanya will seek to defend his middleweight belt for the first time against feared contender Yoel Romero. The UFC’s first Chinese champion will also defend her strawweight belt for the first time against the former champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk in the co-main event.
Yoel Romero is looking absolutely yoked ahead of UFC 248
Christopher Taylor - March 4, 2020
Yoel Romero will get another opportunity to capture UFC gold when he takes on Israel Adesanya for the middleweight championship Saturday night in Las Vegas. The highly anticipated matchup will serve as the main event of UFC 248, which takes place live on pay-per-view from T-Mobile Arena.
Joseph Benavidez believes 'the headbutt altered' the entire fight against Deiveson Figueiredo
Cole Shelton - March 4, 2020
Joseph Benavidez believes the headbutt in his fight against Deiveson Figueiredo was the reason behind his loss. At UFC Norfolk, Benavidez was fighting Figueiredo for the vacant flyweight title. Yet, the Brazilian missed weight leaving the American as the only one who could win the title.
Max Griffin plans on finishing Alex Oliveira and 'taking his soul' at UFC 248
Cole Shelton - March 4, 2020
Max Griffin was excited when he got the contract offer to fight Alex Oliveira, at UFC 248. Griffin has been looking to fight big names since he defeated Mike Perry back in 2018. Since then, he admits the matchups haven’t excited him that much, but on Saturday against ‘Cowboy’ Oliveira that is a different story.
Breaking | Dustin Poirier set to return at UFC San Diego against Dan Hooker
Natasha Hooper - March 4, 2020
Former UFC lightweight interim champion Dustin Poirier is expected to face the divisions surging contender, Dan Hooker in a 155-pound blockbuster showdown. According to MMA Junkie, “The Diamond” is expected to fight Hooker in the main event of UFC San Diego on May 16th, but contracts are yet to be signed. The sources have requested anonymity due to the fact that the UFC has yet to make an official announcement.
AJ McKee tears LCL, continued involvement in Bellator featherweight GP uncertain
Adam Martin - March 4, 2020
Bellator featherweight prospect AJ McKee tore his LCL in his last fight and is questionable to continue in the Bellator Featherweight Grand Prix. McKee defeated Derek Campos via third-round armbar in the quarterfinals of the tournament in his last bout. And he did so despite suffering a complete tear of his LCL within the first 30 seconds of the fight. In a new report from Josh Gross of The Atheltic, McKee said he suffered a complete tear of his LCL, and his continued participation in the Tourmalet is questionable. Check out what Gross wrote on Twitter.
Sean O'Malley gets high praise Dana White: 'He's an exciting fighter, people love him'
Adam Martin - March 4, 2020
UFC president Dana White praised bantamweight prospect Sean O’Malley, saying that he’s an “exciting fighter” and that “people love him.” O’Malley returns from a two-year layoff after numerous issues with USADA when he takes on Jose Quinonez this weekend at UFC 248. Prior to his USADA-induced layoff, O’Malley was quickly emerging as a superstar for the UFC. He had a tremendous performance on the Contender Series and then two wins in the Octagon before taking a long absence.
Dana White says Joanna Jedrzejczyk has been at the beach while Weili Zhang has been training
Adam Martin - March 4, 2020
UFC president Dana White threw some shade at Joanna Jedrzejczyk, saying she’s been at the beaching soaking up the sun while Weili Zhang has been training. Jedrzejczyk meets Zhang this weekend at UFC 248 in the co-main event of the evening with the UFC women’s strawweight title up for grabs. The two rivals do not like each other and have been looking for months to get into the cage and settle their differences. Jedrzejczyk threw more fire on the rivalry when she joked about the coronavirus, and Zhang is sure to want to avenge those comments for the Chinese people.
UFC rankings update: Deiveson Figueiredo moves up at flyweight
Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020
The official UFC rankings have been updated after last weekend’s UFC Norfolk card, and there have been some interesting changes. Most notably, Deiveson Figueiredo has swiped the No. 1 spot at flyweight after stopping Joseph Benavidez in the main event. Had Figueiredo made weight for the fight, he could now call himself the UFC flyweight champ, but his scale fail made him ineligible to win the division’s vacant title.
Israel Adesanya suggests solution to MMA's judging, scoring problems
Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020
Judging is a hot-button issue in MMA of late, and UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has a suggestion that he believes could help mitigate the problem. MMA is scored using the 10 point must system. The winner of each round receives 10 points—unless there’s a point deduction—while the user receives 9 or less. That said, we really see a disparity greater than 10-9. 10-8 rounds are a real rarity. A 10-7 round is unheard of.
Dana White says UFC is bracing for coronavirus complications: 'This is a serious problem'
Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020
UFC President Dana White believes the novel coronavirus outbreak that’s currently sweeping the globe is “a serious problem” and assures that the promotion has been working diligently to determine how best to conduct business under the strain of this health crisis. “Everybody is fighting with the coronavirus,” White said during a media scrum ahead of UFC 248. “This thing started as a Chinese problem and it’s turned into a global problem. It’s going to be interesting to see how this plays out through the rest of this year. This isn’t really a Chinese problem, it’s a global problem.
Weili Zhang still 'really angry' about Joanna Jedrzejczyk making fun of the coronavirus
Adam Martin - March 4, 2020
UFC women’s strawweight champion Weili Zhang admits she’s still irritated by Joanna Jedrzejczyk making fun of the coronavirus on social media. Jedrzejczyk made a joke about the coronavirus on her Instagram in January which ruffled the feathers of Zhang — not to mention those in the MMA community who felt like joking about the coronavirus was an error to do considering how many people around the world have died from the outbreak.
UFC 248 | Pro fighters make their picks for Israel Adesanya vs. Yoel Romero title fight
Cole Shelton - March 4, 2020
In the main event of UFC 248, Israel Adesanya is looking to defend his middleweight title for the first time when he battles Yoel Romero. Heading into the fight, the champion is a -275 favorite while the challenger is a +215 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to make their predictions for the scrap. There, the majority are leaning towards Adesanya but they know Romero only needs one punch to end it.
Petr Yan, Marlon Moraes to headline UFC's debut in Kazakstan
Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020
The UFC’s debut in Kazakhstan, scheduled for June 13, now has a main event — and it’s a good one. The card will reportedly be topped by a bantamweight contender bout between Russia’s Petr Yan and Brazil’s Marlon Moraes, which has been rumored for some time and has now been confirmed by MMA Junkie. Petr Yan will step into the cage in Kazakhstan, a country with a huge Russian population, on a fantastic nine-fight win-streak. His last six victories have occurred in the UFC’s Octagon, where he’s defeated the likes of John Dodson, Jimmie Rivera, and most recently, former bantamweight title challenger Urijah Faber, who he knocked out on the main card of UFC 245 in December. The Russian is 14-1 overall.
Dana White says former opponents have compared punching Yoel Romero to hitting a piece of concrete
Harry Kettle - March 4, 2020
Dana White claims that former opponents of Yoel Romero have said hitting him was like “hitting a piece of concrete”. Romero is widely considered to be one of the most terrifying competitors in the Ultimate Fighting Championship today, and potentially in all of mixed martial arts. At the age of 42 he still seems to possess an insane natural ability and speed that defies all forms of logic at this level.
Dana White uses Tom Brady analogy to explain why fighters are the most popular athletes on earth
Natasha Hooper - March 4, 2020
The UFC has cultivated some of the biggest sports stars in the world, including Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey. UFC president Dana White recently explained why fighters so often become superstars.
Urijah Faber vs Dustin Ortiz set to headline Copa Podio: California
Harry Kettle - March 4, 2020
Urijah Faber and Dustin Ortiz are set to headline Copa Podio: California this Sunday at Vacaville High School in Vacaville, California. The pair will compete against one another in a submission grappling match that will serve as the main event, whereas UFC veterans Danny Castillo and Carlos Rocha will also be squaring off in a no-gi fight in Cali.