MMA News

Cole Shelton - April 6, 2021

Robert Whittaker is confident he will beat Kelvin Gastelum on April 17. Whittaker and Gastelum were supposed to fight at UFC 234 for Whittaker’s middleweight title. But, on the day of the event, the champ was forced out of the bout. Now, in the main event of UFC Vegas 24, Gastelum is stepping up on short notice to face Whittaker.

Adam Martin - April 6, 2021

UFC heavyweight Greg Hardy says that he is preparing to fight at UFC 264 this summer, and he hinted at a matchup against Tai Tuivasa. Hardy hasn’t fought since December when he suffered a TKO loss to Marcin Tybura at UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Neal. Prior to that, Hardy had won back-to-back fights over Maurice Greene and Yorgan de Castro as he looked to close in on the UFC heavyweight division’s top-15 rankings. The loss to Tybura was a temporary setback for the former Dallas Cowboys and Carolina Panthers defensive end, but he is planning on getting back into the Octagon in the next few months and build a new win streak after losing to Tybura.

Cole Shelton - April 6, 2021

Kamaru Usman knows it’s a big night for any welterweight when they get a chance to fight him. In the main event of UFC 261, Usman is set to rematch Jorge Masvidal in a high-profile fight. Although many believe Usman asked for the rematch because of how much star power and draw “Gamebred” has, he says that isn’t true. He knows there will be more eyes but he believes he’s the reason why it is a big fight.

Cole Shelton - April 6, 2021

Conor McGregor hopes Dustin Poirier will stay true to his word of meeting him in the middle of the Octagon on July 10. In the main event of UFC 264 on July 10, McGregor and Poirier are set for their trilogy bout. It will be a highly-anticipated bout with the winner getting a title shot. For McGregor, the stakes are much higher as losing two in a row and of his last four could hurt his legacy. Yet, the Irishman is confident he will make the proper adjustments in the trilogy.

Cole Shelton - April 6, 2021

Calvin Kattar and his team are taking a slow approach to getting him back to full health. At UFC Fight Island 7 on January 16, Kattar suffered a decision loss to Max Holloway. Entering the fight, many thought it would be a back-and-forth scrap but it was the Hawaiian who put on a striking clinic as he landed 445 significant strikes.

bjpenndotcom - April 6, 2021

Former ONE World Title challenger Tyler McGuire wants to make a statement in his next fight. He wants to send a message to the rest of the ONE welterweight division, that he’s ready for another shot at the world title. To do that, however, McGuire needs to get past one of the toughest competitors in his weight class.

Adam D Martin - April 6, 2021

UFC superstar Conor McGregor relived the Marcus Brimage knockout exactly eight years after making his promotional debut at UFC on FUEL TV 9. It was April 6, 2013, when McGregor stepped into the Octagon for the first time against Brimage. At the time, the Irishman was both the Cage Warriors lightweight and featherweight champion and he came into the UFC with a great deal of hype. The fans who had watched him compete in Europe knew that he was a special talent and they wanted to see him get tested against tougher competition. So when the UFC called and brought McGregor on board, it was a massive deal. He accepted the UFC’s offer to fight Brimage, an Ultimate Fighter veteran who was 3-0 in the Octagon, and McGregor never looked back.

Cole Shelton - April 6, 2021

Vicente Luque has shifted his focus to Colby Covington. At UFC 260, Luque picked up the biggest win of his career as he scored a first-round submission win over Tyron Woodley. It was a solid performance for Luque and he wants to keep the momentum going by fighting some ranked above him.

Adam D Martin - April 6, 2021

UFC Hall of Famer Stephan Bonnar was booted from his gym for refusing to wear a mask as he cited a medical exemption to not wear one. Bonnar — one-half of one of the greatest MMA fights of all time with rival Forrest Griffin —  posted a video of himself at his gym on Sunday, which was his 44th birthday. In the video, Bonnar claimed that fellow gym-goers ratted on him for not wearing a mask and the gym told him to leave. Bonnar, meanwhile, is claiming that he has a medical exemption for not wearing a mask due to asthma.

Harry Kettle - April 6, 2021

Austin Vanderford is set to fight Fabian Edwards in a fascinating middleweight bout on May 21 at Bellator 259, MMA Junkie reports. The two rising contenders have both been viewed as future title contenders in the past and in a division where everything is up for grabs, there’s a decent chance a win for either man could take them a lot closer to the top.

Adam D Martin - April 6, 2021

ONE championship superstar Demetrious Johnson scoffed at the notion that he has anything left to prove to UFC president Dana White. Johnson returns on Wednesday night in the main event of the ONE on TNT 1 card when he takes on ONE flyweight champion Adriano Moraes. For Johnson, it’s been a successful run so far in ONE as “Mighty Mouse” has won three straight fights since joining the promotion following a trade with the UFC for Ben Askren in October 2018. He may no longer be the UFC flyweight champion and headlining pay-per-view cards inside the Octagon, but Johnson has proven during his run in ONE that he is still a top-notch talent.

Adam D Martin - April 6, 2021

UFC welterweight superstar Nate Diaz says that he can see, hear and feel the hate following the announcement of the Leon Edwards booking. Diaz hasn’t fought since November 2019 when he lost via TKO (doctor stoppage) to Jorge Masvidal at UFC 244. We haven’t heard much of the Stockton native lately, but then last week the UFC made the surprising announcement that he will be fighting Edwards in the co-main event of UFC 262 on May 15 in Houston, Texas. This will be the first time in UFC history that a non-title, co-main event is set for five rounds, and it’s an indication that the winner of Diaz vs. Edwards will be next in line to fight for the UFC welterweight title.

Adam D Martin - April 6, 2021

UFC lightweight contender Beneil Dariush is excited for his upcoming matchup with Tony Ferguson, who he wants to “out-crazy” at UFC 262. Dariush is the No. 9 ranked lightweight in the world and, on the heels of a six-fight win streak that included some insane wars with the likes of Scott Holtzman and Drakkar Klose, the UFC matchmakers are giving him a serious step up in competition. Standing across Dariush at UFC 262 on May 15 in Houston, Texas will be Ferguson, the No. 5 ranked lightweight and former interim champion. Though Ferguson is coming off of two straight losses to Justin Gaethje and Charles Oliveira, he is still one of the most dangerous lightweights the sport has ever seen, and this fight with Dariush promises to be a war.

Adam D Martin - April 6, 2021

New photos of the UFC Venum fight kits have been released to the public as the promotion’s newest fight kits are now available for purchase. The UFC’s multi-year deal with Reebok recently came to an end at UFC 260. The promotion last year signed a new deal with the apparel company Venum that begins this weekend, as the company will be the promotion’s official uniform supplier starting this Saturday at UFC on ABC 2. In addition to the fighters themselves wearing the Venum gear, fans are now able to buy the fight kits for themselves. Take a look at the photos (via Aaron Bronsteter).

Adam D Martin - April 6, 2021

UFC superstar Jon Jones posted new photos of himself in his heavyweight form, and he looks absolutely massive ahead of his potential return. After dropping the UFC light heavyweight title last summer, Jones has spent the better part of the last year bulking up for his UFC heavyweight debut. The original plan was for Jones to take on the winner of Francis Ngannou vs. Stipe Miocic, which Ngannou ended up winning when he brutally knocked the former champion out at UFC 260. However, Jones and the UFC are now embroiled in a very public financial dispute relating to how much money “Bones” will get to fight Ngannou. At this point, we have no idea if the UFC and Jones will be able to come to a deal, as the two sides appear to be very far apart in money.

Harry Kettle - April 6, 2021

Former UFC champion Anthony Pettis knows that there is a target on his back as he prepares for his big debut with PFL. Pettis is set to battle Clay Collard on April 23 in his season opener as his quest to win the promotion’s lightweight tournament begins. We all know “Showtime” to be one of the most exciting lightweights in the history of mixed martial arts, but at this stage of his career, he still needs to prove to the masses that he has what it takes to succeed.

Christopher Taylor - April 5, 2021

MMA legend Pedro Rizzo recently shared his take on who is the “worst matchup” for newly crowned UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou. Ngannou (16-3 MMA) captured the title of “baddest man on the planet” last month at UFC 260 when he defeated Stipe Miocic by way of second round knockout. The victory marked Ngannou’s fifth in a row, as he had previously scored first round stoppage wins over Junior dos Santos, Cain Velasquez, Curtis Blaydes and Jairzinho Rozenstruik.

Drake Riggs - April 5, 2021

The Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) has powered on as a dominant force in the bare-knuckle boxing world. To give back to the athletes, they’re now working on pension plans. “Our fighters are the most important asset of the company.” ‘We want to ensure that they are compensated not only on the night of the fight but also looked after in retirement. For each BKFC fight, money will be placed in a pension account for them to draw on upon retirement.” pic.twitter.com/1F91VZpx3J