MMA News

Adam Martin - March 28, 2021

Former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz is interested in stepping into the Octagon to fight Sean O’Malley, according to Chael Sonnen. O’Malley knocked out Thomas Almeida in brutal fashion in the third round of their UFC 260 main card fight, and it was the kind of high-profile win on a big card that will surely get him the attention of the top-15 fighters at 135lbs. One of those fighters is apparently Cruz, the longtime UFC bantamweight kingpin who recently defeated Casey Kenney via split decision at UFC 259. Kenney is a teammate of O’Malley at The MMA LAB and it looks like Cruz is now interesting in fighting his teammate O’Malley in what would be a terrific scrap.

Adam Martin - March 28, 2021

UFC superstar Jon Jones says that he is supposed to be seeing a fight proposal from the world’s leading MMA organization next week. Jones was widely expected to fight the winner of UFC 260’s main event between Francis Ngannou and Stipe Miocic, which turned out to be Ngannou after he knocked the former champ out in brutal fashion in the second round to take home the title. However, following the event UFC president Dana White said that Jones won’t be getting the next title shot and that it would be Derrick Lewis who will fight Ngannou next. White also insinuated that Jones should move down to 185lbs given how dominant Ngannou was against Miocic.

Adam Martin - March 28, 2021

UFC welterweight superstar Jorge Masvidal took a shot at former Octagon rival Ben Askren, saying that he doesn’t represent MMA. Askren returns to combat sports on April 17 when he fights Jake Paul on the latest Triller boxing card. Askren retired from the UFC in late 2019 following a submission loss to Demian Maia. That loss came on the heels of a brutal flying knee KO loss to Masvidal at UFC 239. In that fight, “Gamebred” needed just five seconds to rush across the Octagon and nail Asken right on the chin, and it put him out cold. It’s considered by many to be one of the best knockouts in MMA history and will be on the highlight-reel for years to come.

Adam Martin - March 28, 2021

UFC welterweight contender Vicente Luque issued a statement following his submission win over Tyron Woodley in the co-main event of UFC 260. Luque took on Woodley in one of the biggest fights of his career to date, and he passed the test with flying colors when he submitted the former UFC welterweight champion with a D’arce choke in the first round. It was a wild fight for as long as it lasted, as both men blasted each other with big shots and rocked each other, but eventually, Luque proved that he is the superior mixed martial artist at this point of their careers with the submission win.

Adam Martin - March 28, 2021

UFC lightweight Justin Gaethje could be the backup fighter for the upcoming trilogy match between Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor. Gaethje has been extremely vocal lately about his displeasure with the UFC passing him over for a potential vacant lightweight title shot at UFC 262. Instead of Gaethje getting the fight, Michael Chandler is fighting Charles Oliveira for the vacant title in May, and Gaethje wasn’t happy about it. “The Highlight” recently said in an emotional interview that he believes he’s done everything that UFC president Dana White wanted of him, and he was sad to hear that the promotion passed on giving him the title shot over Chandler instead.

Adam Martin - March 28, 2021

UFC president Dana White gushed over “scary” Francis Ngannou following his second-round KO win over Stipe Miocic at UFC 260. Ngannou finished Miocic with strikes in the second round of what was his most complete performance in the UFC to date. We already knew that Ngannou had huge power in his hands, but he showed a complete game in the rematch with Miocic. In addition to his punches that finished the fight, Ngannou also showed some growth in his overall skillset with improved wrestling, both offensively and defensively, and a varied striking attack. It was an excellent performance overall, and that’s why Ngannou is the champion today.

Adam Martin - March 28, 2021

UFC welterweight contender Vicente Luque called out Nate Diaz following his first-round submission win over Tyron Woodley at UFC 260. Luque picked up the biggest win of his UFC career to date when he submitted Woodley in the co-main event of UFC 260 with a D’arce choke. It was a wild fight for as long as it lasted, with Woodley landing a big punch early on that rocked Luque, only to see the Brazilian come back and hurt Woodley on the feet before taking him to the ground and finishing him by submission. It’s the kind of marquee win that Luque needs in order to fight the upper echelon of the UFC welterweight division as he continues to march towards the title. But before a title shot comes, Luque wants to take a money fight against Diaz first.

Adam Martin - March 28, 2021

UFC president Dana White hinted that former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley should retire following his fourth straight loss. Woodley was submitted by Vicente Luque in the co-main event of UFC 260, but it was a fun fight for as long as it lasted and won each man $50,000 each for “Fight of the Night.” After losing three straight fights to Kamaru Usman, Gilbert Burns, and Colby Covington, Woodley came into this fight with Luque with a huge chip on his shoulder, and it showed. As soon as the opening bell rang, Woodley immediately ran across the Octagon and tried to get physical with Luque. He even rocked the Brazilian, but he left himself exposed to counters and Luque was able to hurt him with strikes before getting him to the mat and tapping him.

Adam Martin - March 28, 2021

UFC superstar Jon Jones called UFC president Dana White’s comments “a huge slap in the face” following the events of UFC 260. The main event of UFC 260 featured UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic against challenger Francis Ngannou in a rematch. Although Miocic won the first fight between the two heavyweight rivals, the rematch was a completely different case. After a tough first round that saw Ngannou wobble Miocic with strikes and even beat him in the wrestling department, the second round saw Ngannou brutally knock the champion out. Later on, at the post-fight press conference, White suggested that Jones move down to 185lbs instead of making his planned move to the heavyweight department and fighting Ngannou next.

Adam D Martin - March 28, 2021

Francis Ngannou fans in Batie, Cameroon celebrated after their hometown hero won the UFC heavyweight title at UFC 260 over Stipe Miocic. Ngannou knocked out Miocic in brutal fashion in the second round of their UFC 260 main event title fight. The Cameroon-born Ngannou showed incredible punching power once again against Miocic, but he also showed terrific wrestling as well as he put together the most complete performance of his UFC career and got the job done. It was an absolutely phenomenal victory for Ngannou, who finally becomes the UFC heavyweight champion six years into his career with the world’s leading MMA promotion. It was a great win for “The Predator” and it was the kind of victory that sent him hometown fans into a frenzy.

Adam D Martin - March 28, 2021

Former UFC fighter-turned-boxer Ben Askren released an amazing Rocky 4 inspired video for his upcoming boxing match with Jake Paul. Askren takes on Paul in a high-profile boxing match on April 17 that will be promoted by the Triller app. The promotion recently held the press conference for the fight and both Paul and Askren got a lot of publicity before the bout, as expected. Their matchup is a big fight between a popular YouTuber in Paul and a former UFC star in Askren, and it’s expected to be a pay-per-view blockbuster when it goes down in a few weeks from now.

Adam D Martin - March 28, 2021

UFC superstar Jon Jones has opened as a betting underdog for the first time since his UFC debut for a proposed fight with Francis Ngannou. Jones was dominant as the UFC light heavyweight champion for the past decade and was the betting favorite in all of his fights. For this potential heavyweight debut fight against Ngannou, however, Jones has opened up as an underdog. It’s the first time that “Bones” has opened up as a dog since he defeated Andre Gusmao in his UFC debut back at UFC 87. Right now, Jones is a +175 underdog in the potential Ngannou fight (h/t Aaron Bronsteter).

Adam D Martin - March 28, 2021

UFC superstar Jon Jones says he honestly “wasn’t impressed” by Stipe Miocic’s performance at UFC 260 against Francis Ngannou. Miocic was stopped in the second round by Francis Ngannou in the main event of UFC 260 with punches to lose the UFC heavyweight championship. Ngannou clubbed Miocic early in the first round but he was able to survive it only to get stopped in brutal fashion in the second. Following the fight, Jones took to social media to give props to Ngannou on his performance and criticize Miocic for having a poor showing and losing his belt by KO. Jones played “tweet and delete” again, but fortunately, the images were captured by others.

Adam D Martin - March 28, 2021

The wife of former UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic shared an update following his KO loss to Francis Ngannou at UFC 260. Miocic suffered an absolutely brutal loss when Ngannou finished him in the second round of their UFC 260 main event fight with punches to become the new UFC heavyweight champion. The Cleveland native was unable to muster any offense in the fight with his striking, and his wrestling was ineffective, as well, leading to a tough matchup for him. Although Miocic won the first meeting between these two at UFC 220 in January 2018, the fight went a completely different way this time around, with Ngannou winning by KO.

Adam D Martin - March 28, 2021

Dominick Reyes warned Francis Ngannou that “scrub” Jon Jones will attempt to price his way out of their UFC heavyweight title fight. Reyes and Jones met last year at UFC 247, with Jones winning a controversial unanimous decision to defend the UFC light heavyweight title. Not long ago, Jones made the decision to vacate the belt and make the move up to heavyweight. Reyes, meanwhile, went on to fight Jan Blachowicz for the vacant belt at UFC 253 and lost the fight via TKO. However, that hasn’t stopped him from continuing to throw shots at Jones anytime he gets. After all, many thought that Reyes was the uncrowned champ as many thought he beat Jones.

Adam D Martin - March 28, 2021

UFC superstar Jon Jones responded to Dana White after he suggested that Derrick Lewis is “the fight to make” next for Francis Ngannou. Ngannou knocked out Stipe Miocic in the second round of their UFC 260 main event title fight to become the new UFC heavyweight champion. Most figured that Jones would be next for the winner of the fight, given the UFC president’s previous comments, but at the post-fight press conference, White hinted that Lewis could be next for the belt instead. White even jokingly insinuated that Jones should consider moving down to 185lbs instead.

Christopher Taylor - March 27, 2021

Tyron Woodley was looking to avoid a fourth consecutive loss when he squared off with Vicente Luque in the co-main event of UFC 260. The UFC’s former welterweight kingpin, Woodley (19-6-1 MMA), had most previously competed in September of 2020, where he suffered a TKO loss to rival Colby Covington. That setback was preceded by back-to-back decision losses to Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns.

Christopher Taylor - March 27, 2021

Jon Jones has responded to accusations that he is scared to fight Francis Ngannou following the outcome of Saturday’s UFC 260 main event. The UFC’s former light heavyweight kingpin, Jones (26-1 MMA), had vacated his 205lbs championship last year in order to make a run at heavyweight gold.