MMA News

Tom Taylor - March 2, 2021

In the main event of Saturday’s UFC 259 card, middleweight champion Israel Adesanya will challenge Jan Blachowicz for the promotion’s light heavyweight belt. While Adesanya could soon be the UFC light heavyweight champion, don’t expect him to look the part.

Adam Martin - March 2, 2021

Chael Sonnen blasted the “fake tough guys” atop the UFC welterweight division, suggesting that “none of the top-five guys want to fight.” Sonnen was a guest on the “Victory Loves Company” podcast with Jim West and James Lynch, and was asked his thoughts on the UFC welterweight division. Kamaru Usman currently is the champion and seems likely to rematch Jorge Masvidal in his next fight, but nothing has been put to paper yet. Meanwhile, Colby Covington continues to sit out in hopes for a big fight, while Leon Edwards hasn’t fought in almost two years. It’s been frustrating for fans to watch, as the UFC 170lbs division is one of the marquee weight classes in the promotion. Yet for whatever reason, there doesn’t seem to be much urgency for the top fighters in the weight class to step into the cage, and Sonnen finds that very frustrating.

Tom Taylor - March 2, 2021

Daniel Cormier has responded to the latest diss from his long-time rival, former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones. Jones and Cormier, widely regarded as two of the best fighters of all time, have met twice previously. They first met in January, 2015, with Jones winning by decision. In their second meeting, which occurred in 2017, Jones knocked Cormier out, but the result was overturned when he failed a drug test.

Adam Martin - March 2, 2021

Former UFC title contender Rory MacDonald is set to soon make his PFL welterweight debut against David Michaud when they square off in April. PFL is set to return this spring for its third season after missing all of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The promotion has brought in a number of new fighters to improve its roster, with six divisions of 10 fighters each, including tournament fighters and alternates. One of those fighters is MacDonald, the former Bellator welterweight champion. “The Red King” signed with PFL in late 2019 and was expected to fight in 2020, but his promotional debut was delayed until now as we now have a date for his next fight.

Tom Taylor - March 2, 2021

Ramzan Kadyrov, the head of the Chechen Republic, says he has convinced UFC star Khamzat Chimaev not to retire from mixed martial arts. Chimaev, a native of the Chechen Republic currently living in Sweden, is arguably the hottest prospect in MMA at present, but has been sidelined due to health complications stemming from a recent COVID-19 infection.

Cole Shelton - March 2, 2021

In the main event of UFC 259, Jan Blachowicz is set to defend his light heavyweight title against middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya. Heading into the fight, Blachowicz is a +190 underdog while “The Last Stylebender” is a -240 favorite. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. The pros are unanimous in thinking Adesanya’s striking is too good and will beat Blachowicz to become a champ-champ.

Cole Shelton - March 2, 2021

The 30th episode of Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com with Cole Shelton is here ahead of UFC 259. var _bp = _bp||[]; _bp.push({ "div": "Brid_50564985", "obj": {"id":"22947","width":"100%","height":"","video":"730545"} });

Tom Taylor - March 2, 2021

Former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold is hoping to return to action in the summer—ideally for a “sexy” fight with Darren Till or Marvin Vettori. Rockhold has not fought since July, 2019, when he was knocked out by Jan Blachowicz in his first fight in the light heavyweight division.

Tom Taylor - March 2, 2021

Former UFC welterweight title challenger Dan Hardy has reacted after Matt Brown accepted a June 19 fight with Dhiego Lima. At the height of his career, Hardy was known as one of the most dangerous and entertaining welterweights on the UFC roster. Regrettably, Hardy has been kept out of action since 2012, when it was discovered that he has a rare but generally innocuous heart condition called Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome.

Harry Kettle - March 2, 2021

MMA veterans Matt Brown and Dhiego Lima are set to face each other in the Octagon on June 19, MMA Fighting reports. Both of these men have already competed in 2021 with both coming up short. Brown lost a unanimous decision to Carlos Condit at UFC on ABC 1, whereas Lima fell to a decision defeat of his own at the hands of Belal Muhammad back at UFC 258.

Harry Kettle - March 2, 2021

UFC middleweight king Israel Adesanya has issued a reaction to Paulo Costa’s claim he was hungover for the UFC 253 showdown. Adesanya put on a real show when he defended his UFC Middleweight Championship against Costa, dominating and finishing the Brazilian star to successfully retain his title. Now, this Saturday at UFC 259, he’ll attempt to become a two-weight world champion when he challenges Jan Blachowicz for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship.

Christopher Taylor - March 1, 2021

Dana White has weighed in after budding UFC star Khamzat Chimaev announced his sudden retirement from mixed martial arts. Chimaev (9-0 MMA) has been one of many unfortunate victims of the global pandemic and due to lingering symptoms he has been unable to compete since last fall.

Cole Shelton - March 1, 2021

Kai Kara-France is excited to be on UFC 259. Although Kara-France is on the prelims, he will be competing with some of his teammates in Carlos Ulberg and Israel Adesanya, as well as his Tiger Muay Thai teammate in Petr Yan. It’s a massive event for the UFC and for City Kickboxing.

Christopher Taylor - March 1, 2021

Jon Jones has fired back at his longtime rival Daniel Cormier, this after ‘DC’ suggested that he will not be able to “knockout anybody” at heavyweight. The UFC’s longtime light heavyweight kingpin, Jones (26-1 MMA), vacated the promotions 205lbs title in August of 2020, following failed negotiations for a proposed heavyweight fight with Francis Ngannou.

Cole Shelton - March 1, 2021

Khamzat Chimaev has apparently retired from MMA. Chimaev, who became a superstar in the UFC in 2020, was set to challenge Leon Edwards in December. However, the fight was postponed due to Edwards testing positive for COVID-19. The fight was rebooked for January but the Swede got COVID-19 and it was pushed back to March. However, due to the lingering effects of the virus, the fight was canceled again and now, it appears it has resulted in Chimaev announcing his retirement from MMA.

Cole Shelton - March 1, 2021

Amanda Nunes knows she can’t overlook Megan Anderson in the co-main event of UFC 259. Nunes is a massive -1200 favorite as many expect her to steamroll Anderson as she has done to her past opponents. At featherweight, the Brazilian has been unstoppable with a quick KO over Cris Cyborg and a dominant performance over Felicia Spencer. However, Nunes knows Anderson poses some problems with her size and reach advantage so she can’t overlook her.

Cole Shelton - March 1, 2021

Khabib Nurmagomedov believes no one will beat his pupil, Islam Makhachev. Makhachev is the main training partner of Nurmagomedov and many call him his protégé. Since “The Eagle” retired, he also passed along the torch to Makhachev who many inside AKA believe is destined to be a future champion. Although he is still ranked outside the top-10, Nurmagomedov believes his fellow Dagestani native will be the champion by the end of 2021.

Cole Shelton - March 1, 2021

Daniel Cormier doesn’t think Jon Jones will have knockout power at heavyweight. For months now, Jones has been bulking up for a heavyweight move. “Bones” wants to be prepared for the move as it’s expected he will face the winner of Stipe Miocic vs Francis Ngannou 2 in the summer. However, when the former light heavyweight champion moves up to heavyweight, Cormier doesn’t think he will be able to KO anyone.