MMA News
Betting odds released for Bellator Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix quarterfinals
Adam Martin - February 9, 2021
The betting odds have been released for the upcoming Bellator MMA Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix tournament quarterfinals. Bellator announced the complete eight-man bracket for the promotion’s highly-anticipated 205lbs tournament on Tuesday. Hours later, the oddsmakers released the betting odds for all four quarterfinal matchups. Take a look at the opening odds for the Bellator Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix via BetOnline.
Nate Diaz uninterested in Jake Paul fight right now, but believes it will "for sure" happen
Cole Shelton - February 9, 2021
Nate Diaz appears open to a fight with Jake Paul down the line. After Paul knocked out Nate Robinson on the Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. undercard he called out several MMA fighters. Among those he called out were Ben Askren, Dillon Danis, Conor McGregor, and Nate Diaz.
Ian Heinisch expects to finish Kelvin Gastelum in "spectacular fashion" at UFC 258
Cole Shelton - February 9, 2021
Ian Heinisch wasn’t too surprised he was the one facing Kelvin Gastelum. After Heinisch was supposed to face Brendan Allen in November before getting COVID-19, he knew a big opportunity would be coming to him. He saw how the UFC was pushing new talent up the middleweight ranks in Marvin Vettori and Kevin Holland and knew he was next.
Yoel Romero reacts after booking Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson in first round of Bellator light heavyweight tournament
Cole Shelton - February 9, 2021
Yoel Romero is excited to face Anthony Johnson in his Bellator debut. It was revealed at Bellator’s press conference that both Romero and Johnson would be apart of the grand prix and face one another on April 16. It is a fight the fans wanted to see and Romero is eager for the fight to happen.
Elias Theodorou makes his return to the cage against fellow UFC veteran Matt Dwyer
Adam Martin - February 9, 2021
Former Ultimate Fighter winner Elias Theodorou makes his return to the cage against fellow UFC veteran Matt Dwyer at Rise FC 6. MMA journalist and Rise FC commentator James Lynch shared news of the bout, which is scheduled to take place at the Songhees Wellness Center on March 13 in Victoria, B.C. Both Theodorou and Dwyer are UFC veterans as well as fellow Canadians so this is the perfect fight for the MMA fans in British Columbia. It’s also a big opportunity for both men in their professional careers, as an impressive victory could land the winner of this matchup a deal with a bigger promotion.
UFC 258 loses main card bantamweight fight between Pedro Munhoz and Jimmie Rivera
Tom Taylor - February 9, 2021
The upcoming UFC 258 card has lost an intriguing bantamweight fight between Pedro Munhoz and Jimmie Rivera. UFC 258 goes down this Saturday in Las Vegas. Munhoz and Rivera were scheduled to meet on the event’s main card, in a rematch of a 2015 fight that Rivera won by split decision.
Fabricio Werdum, Kayla Harrison highlight PFL heavyweight and women's lightweight brackets
Adam Martin - February 9, 2021
Fabricio Werdum and Kayla Harrison are among the fighters in the upcoming PFL season three men’s heavyweight and women’s lightweight brackets. PFL’s third season kicks off in April and the promotion has been busy in the last week releasing the rosters for its light heavyweight, welterweight, lightweight, and featherweight rosters. On Tuesday, PFL released the rosters for heavyweight and women’s lightweight. Among the participants in these tournaments are former UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum and women’s star Kayla Harrison.
Anthony Smith returns to the Octagon at UFC 261 against Jimmy Crute
Adam Martin - February 9, 2021
A pair of light heavyweight contenders will meet at UFC 261 as Anthony Smith is set to take on Jimmy Crute, who recently lost his opponent. Crute was originally set to take on Johnny Walker at UFC 260, but Walker was forced to withdraw from that fight due to a torn pectoral muscle. Instead, Crute is now shifted back a month but he gets to take on a higher-ranked fighter instead when he meets Smith at UFC 261, which takes place on April 24. ESPN’s Brett Okamoto was the first to break the news that Smith would be fighting Crute.
Dustin Poirier responds to Nate Diaz's callout
Tom Taylor - February 9, 2021
Top UFC lightweight contender Dustin Poirier has already responded to a recent callout from his long-time rival, Nate Diaz. Diaz recently partook in an interview with Ariel Helwani of ESPN, which was published on Tuesday morning. During the interview, he expressed interest in fighting Charles Oliveira and Poirier, but clarified that he has no interest in doing so in the 155-pound lightweight division—only at 165 or 170 pounds.
Conor McGregor trolls Nate Diaz over ESPN interview: "Look out, we got a bad ass"
Tom Taylor - February 9, 2021
It didn’t take long for Conor McGregor to respond to Nate Diaz’s Tuesday morning interview with ESPN. Diaz and McGregor have fought twice previously. They first met at welterweight in March, 2016, with Diaz submitting McGregor in round two. The pair then met in an immediate rematch in August of the same year. In that fight, McGregor evened the score with a hard-fought majority decision victory.
Bellator reportedly plotting 8-man LHW tournament featuring Romero, Rumble, Anderson
Tom Taylor - February 9, 2021
Bellator MMA is reportedly plotting an eight-man light heavyweight tournament featuring former UFC stars Yoel Romero, Anthony “Rumble” Johnson and Corey Anderson, and more. Bellator’s light heavyweight division has been quite strong for awhile now, as the home of fighters like Phil Davis, Ryan Bader, and reigning champion Vadim Nemkov. After the promotion signed former UFC contenders like Romero, Rumble and Anderson, however, its light heavyweight division is better than ever—debatably even better than the UFC’s.
Nate Diaz says he created blueprint for Floyd Mayweather's win over Conor McGregor
Tom Taylor - February 9, 2021
Nate Diaz says he created the blueprint for defeating Conor McGregor, and that Floyd Mayweather followed that blueprint in his boxing match with the Irishman. Diaz defeated McGregor by second-round submission in a welterweight fight in 2016. It was McGregor’s first setback in the UFC.
Just Scrap Radio Ep. 27 with Maycee Barber, Ian Heinisch, Jim Miller, Julian Marquez, Gillian Robertson, and Anthony Hernandez
Cole Shelton - February 9, 2021
The 27th episode of Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com with Cole Shelton is here ahead of UFC 258. var _bp = _bp||[]; _bp.push({ "div": "Brid_22657878", "obj": {"id":"22947","width":"100%","height":"","video":"717044"} });
RIZIN boss responds to Spike Carlyle, lays out plans for featherweight GP
Tom Taylor - February 9, 2021
RIZIN CEO Nobuyuki Sakakibara has responded to some recent comments from Spike Carlyle, and laid out plans for a Featherweight Grand Prix. Carlyle was recently released by the UFC after going 1-2 in the promotion’s featherweight division. After his release, he expressed interest in migrating to RIZIN because he’s always wanted to fight in Japan, where the promotion is based.
Nate Diaz explains what Conor McGregor did wrong against Dustin Poirier
Tom Taylor - February 9, 2021
Nate Diaz has shared his thoughts on what Conor McGregor did wrong in his recent TKO loss to Dustin Poirier. McGregor and Poirier met in the main event of UFC 257 last month, in a rematch of a 2014 featherweight fight that the former won by first-round knockout. In their UFC 257 rematch, Poirier evened the score, mangling McGregor’s lead leg with calf kicks, and stopping him with punches in round two.
Nate Diaz targets fight with Charles Oliveira—with a catch
Tom Taylor - February 9, 2021
Nate Diaz wants to fight the UFC’s No. 3-ranked lightweight contender Charles Oliveira—but he wants to fight him at 170 pounds. Diaz has not fought since November, 2019, when he was stopped by Jorge Masvidal in a welterweight fight. That being said, UFC President Dana White recently divulged that he is working on a lightweight fight for the fan favorite.
Diego Sanchez references UFC 107 loss to BJ Penn as defense for previous comments made about Calvin Kattar
Harry Kettle - February 9, 2021
UFC veteran Diego Sanchez has referenced his UFC 107 loss to BJ Penn as evidence for his recent comments about Calvin Kattar. Sanchez has always been fairly outspoken but in the last few years, has had no problem sharing his opinions on social media.
Jon Jones says there is one fighter who comes a "close second" in the MMA Goat conversation
Christopher Taylor - February 8, 2021
Jon Jones believes there is one fighter who comes a “close second” to him in the hotly debated MMA Goat conversation. Fans and analysts are always debating who is the greatest mixed martial artist of all time and the general consensus ends with either Khabib Nurmagomedov or Jon Jones. Many pundits consider ‘Bones’ to be at the top of the list because of his sensational record UFC in title fights. Jones is 14-0, with 1 no-contest, in his fifteen career UFC title fights.