MMA News
Khetag Pliev issues statement after losing finger at CFFC fight
Adam D Martin - April 2, 2021
MMA fighter Khetag Pliev has issued a statement after losing one of his fingers at a Cage Fury Fighting Championships fight on Thursday night. It almost seemed like it couldn’t be real when Pliev lost his finger during his fight against Devin Goodale at CFFC 94. But he in fact did lose his finger during the fight. The photos are not for a weak stomach. It was an absolutely bizarre injury and one that happened apparently as a result of his opponent grabbing into his gloves and causing the injury. Fortunately, the finger was located in a quick fashion and the fighter was able to have it reattached at a hospital. The fighter took to his social media afterward and told fans that he is feeling better, not to worry, and he specifically thanked the doctor for her good work.
Dustin Poirier officially signs contract for Conor McGregor trilogy at UFC 264
Cole Shelton - April 2, 2021
Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor 3 will happen at UFC 264 on July 10. For quite some time, reports have circulated that the fight would happen on that date, however, nothing had been signed. Poirier had even turned down a title shot in order to pursue the trilogy fight.
Alonzo Menifield knew he would submit Fabio Cherant, eyes June return
Cole Shelton - April 2, 2021
Alonzo Menifield knew there was a lot of pressure on him entering his UFC 260 fight. Originally, Menifield was set to face William Knight but just three days before Knight was out of the fight due to testing positive for COVID-19. When Menifield found out the news, he was disappointed as he thought he wouldn’t get the chance to fight.
Dustin Poirier confirms he turned down title shot against Charles Oliveira at UFC 262
Adam D Martin - April 2, 2021
UFC lightweight contender Dustin Poirier confirmed that he turned down a potential 155lbs title shot against Charles Oliveira at UFC 262. After knocking out Conor McGregor at UFC 257 in January, it was widely expected that Poirier would be in the next lightweight title fight after former champion Khabib Nurmagomedov retired and vacated his title. However, the UFC instead booked Oliveira against Michael Chandler for the vacant belt in the main event of UFC 262. That news surprised a lot of fans, who thought Poirier deserved the title shot. However, UFC president Dana White confirmed that Poirier turned down the title shot to fight McGregor in a trilogy. Considering how much money that fight is destined to produce, it made sense for Poirier to decline the title show in order to take the money trilogy fight against McGregor instead.
Aleksandar Rakic believes Jon Jones should get paid more money to fight Francis Ngannou
Adam D Martin - April 2, 2021
UFC light heavyweight Aleksandar Rakic believes that former divisional rival Jon Jones should get paid more money to fight Francis Ngannou. Rakic, one of the best fighters in the UFC at 205lbs currently, is coming off of a decision win over Thiago Santos in his last fight, and he is widely expected to be just one or two fights away now from taking on UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz. Jones, of course, was the kingpin of the UFC’s 205lbs division for the last decade, but he is planning on moving up to heavyweight this summer. The plan was for him to fight Ngannou in a mega-fight, but Jones is currently involved in a public financial despite with the UFC.
Colby Covington says he will be the unofficial backup for UFC 261, plans to be in attendance
Cole Shelton - April 2, 2021
Colby Covington says he will be in attendance for UFC 261 which sees Kamaru Usman defend his welterweight title against Jorge Masvidal. For months now, the talk was Covington would face Masvidal and the two would coach The Ultimate Fighter. Yet, with the UFC having a full capacity crowd in Jacksonville, the promotion decided to book the rematch with left Covington on the outside looking in.
Jan Blachowicz open to fighting Francis Ngannou at heavyweight
Adam D Martin - April 2, 2021
UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz says he is open to moving up to heavyweight and taking on champion Francis Ngannou. Blachowicz is coming off of his first successful title defense of the UFC’s 205lbs title when he defeated middleweight champion Israel Adesanya via unanimous decision at UFC 259. For his next fight, Blachowicz is expected to take on No. 1 contender Glover Teixeira. Having said that, Blachowicz is open to taking on another challenge if the UFC wants him to. Should Jon Jones not take the fight with Ngannou, then Blachowicz is open to taking it.
Michael Chandler believes "there’s going to be a ton of pressure on" Dustin Poirier after passing over title shot
Cole Shelton - April 2, 2021
Michael Chandler thinks there will be a ton of pressure on Dustin Poirier in his trilogy fight against Conor McGregor. After Poirier scored a second-round TKO over McGregor at UFC 257, many assumed he would be fighting for the lightweight title next. Yet, he passed over the title shot to fight McGregor again leaving Chandler to face Charles Oliveira in May.
Women's flyweight prospect Erin Blanchfield issues statement after signing with the UFC
Adam D Martin - April 2, 2021
Women’s flyweight prospect Erin Blanchfield has issued a statement after signing with the UFC and having her fight booked on short notice. Blanchfield is just 21 years old and she has already racked up a 6-1 record in mixed martial arts since making her professional debut in 2018. After starting off her MMA career with a TKO win in CFFC, Blanchfield was quickly scooped up by the all-women MMA promotion Invicta FC and she picked up two wins, including a majority decision victory over current UFC fighter Kay Hansen. After dropping a controversial split decision loss to Tracy Cortez, another current UFC fighter, Blanchfield returned to CFFC and picked up another stoppage win, before re-joining Invicta FC and picking up two more victories in that organization.
Scott Coker says Bellator talking to Megan Anderson
Adam D Martin - April 2, 2021
Bellator president Scott Coker says that his promotion is currently in talks with former UFC featherweight title challenger Megan Anderson. Anderson was recently released by the UFC following the expiration of her contract in the wake of a first-round submission loss to Amanda Nunes at UFC 259. Despite losing that fight and becoming a free agent, Anderson is still a big name in the world of the women’s featherweight division. With Bellator having Cris Cyborg as the champion and a slew of other 145lbs women fighters including Julia Budd and Cat Zingano, it makes sense that the promotion would reach out to Anderson about the possibility of joining Bellator.
Eddie Alvarez believes winning ONE belt would make him the greatest lightweight ever
Adam D Martin - April 2, 2021
Former UFC and Bellator champion Eddie Alvarez believes that winning the ONE championship belt would make him the greatest lightweight ever. Alvarez returns to the cage next week at ONE on TNT 1 when he takes on Iuri Lapicus, with the winner next in line to fight for the ONE lightweight title. Alvarez, of course, is also the former UFC lightweight champion and the former Bellator lightweight champion, so winning a third belt in a major organization would make give him the rare “triple crown” in MMA.
Laura Sanko hilariously pranks son with April Fool's Day tattoo
Drake Riggs - April 1, 2021
Former Invicta FC atomweight prospect turned UFC broadcaster, Laura Sanko is a woman of many talents. To celebrate April Fool’s Day, the Kansas resident pranked her son with a surprise tattoo reveal. https://twitter.com/laura_sanko/status/1377738515253977089?s=20
Khetag Pliev loses his finger mid-fight at CFFC 94
Drake Riggs - April 1, 2021
It may be April’s Fools Day… but this is no joke. At CFFC 94, Canadian prospect Khetag Pliev literally lost his finger. Taking on Devin Goodale in a 175-pound catchweight contest, Goodale would end up handing Pliev just the second loss of his seven-fight career. The method of victory came officially as a second-round TKO for Goodale as the action was stopped between rounds… because mid-fight Pliev would end up having his left ring finger detached from his body.
Anderson Silva opens as a sizeable underdog in boxing match against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.
Cole Shelton - April 1, 2021
Anderson Silva is the betting underdog in his upcoming boxing match against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. this summer. On June 19, at the Jalisco Stadium in Guadalajara, Mexico, Silva will have his first fight since being released from the UFC in the ring. It’s a very intriguing matchup as the Brazilian is known for his boxing but Chavez Jr. is a former boxing world champion, and to no surprise is the betting favorite.
Scott Coker very interested in signing Alistair Overeem or Junior dos Santos to fight Fedor Emelianenko
Cole Shelton - April 1, 2021
Scott Coker likes the idea of signing Alistair Overeem or Junior dos Santos to fight Fedor Emelianenko. After Emelinaneko beat Rampage Jackson in December of 2019, the plan was to have his farewell tour be in 2020. However, due to the pandemic, the Russian didn’t get a chance to fight, but according to Scott Coker, he says the MMA legend will fight sometime in the next couple of months,
Marvin Vettori set to fight Kevin Holland on UFC on ABC 2
Alfredo Zullino - April 1, 2021
It’s official. A middleweight clash between Marvin Vettori (16-3-1 MMA, 6-2-1 UFC) and Kevin Holland (21-6 MMA, 8-3 UFC) is scheduled for April 10. There were rumors about this fight since Darren Till was forced out of his encounter against the Italian due to a broken collarbone. Right after that, Kevin Holland offered to face Marvin Vettori on short notice, receiving a positive message from “The Italian Dream”.
Khabib Nurmagomedov shares his honest thoughts about Dana White: "Sometimes he is nice, sometimes he is not nice"
Adam D Martin - April 1, 2021
Khabib Nurmagomedov shares his honest thoughts about UFC president Dana White, saying that “sometimes he is nice, sometimes he is not nice.” “The Eagle” recently announced his retirement from MMA and he vacated his UFC lightweight title in order to step away from the sport. Though Nurmagomedov had first mentioned talks of retirement last October, White tried to convince him for six months to fight again. Alas, Nurmagomedov decided that he had already accomplished everything he wanted to in the sport, and he decided to step away from MMA with a 29-0 record.
Mike Hamel expects to derail the hype of Usman Nurmagomedov: "I'm going to clip him"
Cole Shelton - April 1, 2021
Mike Hamel had a feeling he’d be the one to welcome Usman Nurmagomedov to Bellator. When Nurmagomedov, Khabib’s cousin, signed with Bellator, Hamel started researching the 11-0 fighter. After spending some time looking into him, he started telling his coaches and teammates he will end up fighting. Then, weeks later, Hamel got offered to fight Nurmagomedov at Bellator 255, which is exciting for him.