MMA News
What's next for the stars of UFC 316?
Cole Shelton - June 9, 2025
The UFC was in Newark, New Jersey, on Saturday for a solid UFC 316 card. The main event saw Merab Dvalishvili rematching Sean O’Malley for the bantamweight belt. The co-main event saw Julianna Pena defending her bantamweight title against Kayla Harrison. Ultimately, it was Dvalishvili who beat O’Malley again, but this time he submitted ‘Suga’ to defend his bantamweight title. The co-main event saw Harrison submit Pena to win the women’s bantamweight title. Following UFC 316, here is what I think should be next for the stars of the event.
UFC legend warns Kayla Harrison against Amanda Nunes fight: 'I would retire from the sport'
BJ Penn Staff - June 9, 2025
All signs now point to a UFC super fight between Kayla Harrison and Amanda Nunes in the very near future. However, not everybody is on board with the matchup. Harrison claimed the bantamweight title with a submission win over Julianna Peña in the co-main event of last Saturday’s UFC 316 card in Newark. Leading into the fight, Nunes announced plans to end her retirement and return to the Octagon. Now that Harrison has the belt, it’s just a question of when they fight.
WATCH | UFC stars give new champ Kayla Harrison a hero's welcome at American Top Team
BJ Penn Staff - June 9, 2025
New UFC bantamweight champion Kayla Harrison is back home in Florida, and received a hero’s welcome from some of the top fighters in MMA when she returned to American Top Team. Harrison finally won UFC gold at UFC 316 this past weekend in Newark, New Jersey, tapping out trash-talking champion Julianna Peña with a kimura. She didn’t waste any time returning home to South Florida, where her teammates at the renowned gym awaited.
Merab Dvalishvili open to fighting flyweight champ Alexandre Pantoja: "People will be interested in this fight"
Cole Shelton - June 9, 2025
Merab Dvalishvili believes that a fight against Alexandre Pantoja would be one that the people would be interested in. Dvalishvili defended his bantamweight title on Saturday in the main event of UFC 316 with a submission win over Sean O’Malley. It was a dominating performance, and after the win, his next title defense wasn’t clear. Cory Sandhagen appears to be next in line, but Petr Yan and Umar Nurmagomedov are both potential candidates.
Joe Pyfer apologizes for calling Mexico a 'sh*t hole', but will still 'never fight there again'
BJ Penn Staff - June 9, 2025
UFC middleweight contender Joe Pyfer is sorry for the things he said about Mexico. Pyfer, one of the division’s fastest rising contenders, was set to fight Kelvin Gastelum when the UFC touched down in Mexico City on March 29. Regrettably, the fight fell through at the very last minute. The cause? Pyfer came down with stomach troubles just hours out from the event, which he later blamed on his travel to Mexico in the least graceful terms possible.
Julianna Pena speaks out following UFC 316 loss to Kayla Harrison
Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 9, 2025
Julianna Pena has issued a statement in the aftermath of UFC 316. Pena put the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship at stake against Kayla Harrison on Saturday. While “The Venezuelan Vixen” was in her second reign as a UFC titleholder, she was in search of her first successful defense. It didn’t come in Newark, as Harrison submitted Pena in the second round via kimura to lay claim to the bantamweight gold.
Justin Gaethje considering retirement if UFC doesn't meet his demand
Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 9, 2025
Justin Gaethje might walk away from pro MMA competition if the UFC doesn’t grant his request. Gaethje finds himself on the outside looking in as far as the next UFC lightweight title fight is concerned. Ilia Topuria relinquished the UFC Featherweight Championship, and he will receive a shot at the vacant 155-pound gold against Charles Oliveira on June 28. Despite the fact that Oliveira has a submission win over Gaethje, “The Highlight” feels slighted.
Sean O'Malley made huge mistake in Merab Dvalishvili rematch, says top UFC contender
Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 9, 2025
Did Sean O’Malley make a crucial error before he was ultimately submitted by Merab Dvalishvili? O’Malley challenged Dvalishvili for the UFC Bantamweight Championship on Saturday. Dvalishvili had defeated “Suga” to capture the 135-pound gold back in Sept. 2024. While the first encounter ended via unanimous decision, Dvalishvili was able to secure his first finish since 2021. It was also “The Machine’s” first submission win since 2017.
Ben Askren’s wife confirms he has been hospitalized with severe pneumonia
Harry Kettle - June 9, 2025
MMA and wrestling legend Ben Askren has been hospitalized due to a case of severe pneumonia, his wife has announced. Over the course of the last few days, there has been mounting speculation regarding the condition of the great Ben Askren. After fans were asked to pray for him by Ohio State wrestling coach Thomas Ryan, fans were concerned that something serious had happened to the former UFC star. It led to an outpouring of support from the community, many of whom know Ben on a personal level.
Kayla Harrison details the extreme regiment she needed to undergo in order to make 135lbs at UFC 316: “I’ve been through some stuff”
Harry Kettle - June 9, 2025
UFC women’s bantamweight champion Kayla Harrison has spoken about what she has to endure in order to make 135 pounds. Last Saturday night, Kayla Harrison made it to the top of the mountain. She defeated Julianna Pena via submission to become the new UFC women’s bantamweight champion. In doing so, she added the belt to her incredible list of achievements, which includes two Olympic gold medals and two PFL championships.
Sean O’Malley issues statement following submission loss to Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 316: “Sorry we didn’t get the job done”
Harry Kettle - June 9, 2025
UFC star Sean O’Malley has issued a statement following his submission loss to Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 316. As we know, Sean O’Malley fell short in his attempt to reclaim the UFC bantamweight championship last weekend. In the main event of UFC 316 on Saturday night, he was submitted in the third round by dominant champion Merab Dvalishvili. While Sean was able to showcase some improvements in the first couple of rounds, he ultimately wasn’t able to keep up with ‘The Machine’.
Henry Cejudo calls for retirement “tune up” fight with Sean O’Malley following UFC 316: “What do you say precious”
Harry Kettle - June 9, 2025
UFC legend Henry Cejudo has called for a fight against Sean O’Malley following the latter’s loss at UFC 316 last weekend. As we know, Sean O’Malley fell short in his attempt to regain the UFC bantamweight championship last Saturday night. He was attempting to win it back from Merab Dvalishvili, the same man who took it from him in the first place. Unfortunately, after a competitive start to proceedings, ‘Suga’ was simply overwhelmed by Merab who seems to be getting better and better as champion.
Patchy Mix speaks on unsuccessful UFC debut against Mario Bautista
Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 8, 2025
Patchy Mix has issued a statement following his defeat to Mario Bautista in his UFC debut. Mix and Bautista shared the Octagon on the main card of UFC 316 in Newark. It was Mix’s first fight since being freed of his PFL contract after being shelved for a year. Mix was unable to get the better of Bautista, who took home a unanimous decision victory to extend his winning streak to eight.
Merab Dvalishvili reveals key name who helped him defeat Sean O'Malley again at UFC 316
Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 8, 2025
Merab Dvalishvili says one key name played a huge role in his successful training camp for UFC 316. Dvalishvili put his bantamweight title at stake against Sean O’Malley in a rematch on Saturday. Dvalishvili captured the 135-pound gold from “Suga” in their first encounter. In the rematch, Dvalishvili secured a north-south choke in the third round to maintain his hold on the gold. It marks O’Malley’s first submission defeat in pro MMA competition.
Alex Pereira takes shot at Magomed Ankalaev amid social media beef
Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 8, 2025
Alex Pereira has responded to Magomed Ankalaev’s constant digs towards him on social media. Pereira lost the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship to Ankalaev in the main event of UFC 313 back in March. “Poatan” found himself moving backwards throughout the fight, and he ended up losing the gold via unanimous decision. The defeat snapped Pereira’s five-fight winning streak, which included three successful title defenses.
Amanda Nunes shares true reason for initial UFC retirement
Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 8, 2025
Amanda Nunes has revealed the true reason she initially decided to retire. Nunes walked away from pro MMA competition after defeating Irene Aldana to successfully retain the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship. That bout took place on June 10, 2023. It didn’t take long for Nunes to tease a return to the Octagon, which was music to the ears of UFC CEO Dana White.
Kayla Harrison reacts to future UFC title fight with Amanda Nunes
Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 8, 2025
Kayla Harrison wants the best version of Amanda Nunes when the two collide. Harrison captured the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship from Julianna Pena on Saturday. The two collided inside the Prudential Center in Newark. Harrison scored a submission finish via kimura to capture the 135-pound gold.
Dana White reacts to Patchy Mix’s disappointing Octagon debut at UFC 316
Harry Kettle - June 8, 2025
UFC president Dana White has given his thoughts on Patchy Mix’s disappointing debut at UFC 316 last night. As we know, Patchy Mix made his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut yesterday. The expectation was that the Bellator star would come in and put on a clinic to really announce himself on the world stage – but that didn’t happen. Instead, he fell to a one-sided and pretty disappointing loss at the hands of Mario Bautista. In fact, he’s been getting a whole lot of slack for the performance in a general sense.