MMA News

Natasha Hooper - October 29, 2019

UFC 244 is one of the most highly anticipated events on the 2019 MMA calendar and it takes place this weekend at Madison Square Gardens in New York. Jorge Masvidal will square off against Nate Diaz in the welterweight main event. They will battle it out for the unprecedented ‘BMF’ title, awarded by none other than Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson.

Christopher Taylor - October 29, 2019

Fight fans received unfortunate news today that Paulo Costa had suffered an injury and was forced out of his slated title fight with Israel Adesanya. UFC President Dana White revealed the news in an interview with ‘The Schmo’, explaining that Costa had injured his bicep and will be out for eight months. White went on to say the promotion is working on securing a different opponent for Adesanya.

Cole Shelton - October 29, 2019

Two straight losses haven’t derailed Ben Askren’s confidence. Askren retired in 2017 because he could not get a shot in the UFC to prove he was the best welterweight in the world. Yet, this year that all changed. He made his Octagon debut in March with a submission win over Robbie Lawler. Since then though, he lost in five-seconds to Jorge Masvidal at UFC 239 and then was submitted by Demian Maia. His stock has dropped due to the setbacks and now said he is contemplating retirement.

Tom Taylor - October 29, 2019

In keeping with earlier rumors, Dwayne Johnson — better known as The Rock — will bestow the winner of Nate Diaz and Jorge Masvidal’s UFC 244 fight with the BMF belt. The pro wrestler and Hollywood actor announced this exciting news in a Tuesday Instagram Live session with UFC President Dana White. “This addition to the company and the brand and to the sport, this BMF belt, I think it’s brilliant,” Johnson said (transcript via ESPN). “It’s so smart and it’s just fun, man.”

Adam Martin - October 29, 2019

UFC president Dana White confirmed that top middleweight contender Paulo Costa is injured and out of his fight against Israel Adesanya. White confirmed in an interview with The Schmo that Costa injured his bicep and will be out for eight months. The UFC president says the promotion is working on securing a different opponent for Adesanya.

Adam Martin - October 29, 2019

Bellator heavyweight Roy Nelson has some words of advice for the UFC’s Greg Hardy when he fights Alexander Volkov. Nelson tells Hardy to ‘use two inhalers.’ Nelson previously fought Volkov in the UFC, so he knows a thing or two about fighting the giant Russian. Hardy takes on Volkov in the co-main event of UFC Moscow next week, and Nelson was kind enough to offer Hardy some advice for the fight.

Mike Heck - October 29, 2019

President Donald Trump has had ties to the world of mixed martial arts for years and it seems he has his sights set on watching the “BMF” title fight between Jorge Masvidal and Nate Diaz at UFC 244 in person. According to a report via Twitter from Annie Karni, a White House correspondent for the New York Times, the President of the United States is “tentatively scheduled” to attend UFC 244 at Madison Square Garden this Saturday.

Fernando Quiles - October 29, 2019

Chael Sonnen believes Jon Jones put on an act when he showed support for Nate Diaz. The UFC 244 main event appeared to be in serious jeopardy when Diaz claimed he was off the card. The Stockton native said elevated levels were found in his test results and he was told that it was likely due to contaminated supplements. Diaz wasn’t buying that reason as he doesn’t eat meat and only uses natural food supplements.

BJPENN.COM Staff - October 29, 2019

ONE Strawweight World Champion Joshua Pacio will not allow Rene Catalan to take his title on 8 November at ONE: Masters of Fate. Pacio is focused on his preparations and won’t leave anything to chance, knowing that he will return to the Mall of Asia Arena in Manila where he reclaimed his golden strap from Yosuke Saruta in April.

Tom Taylor - October 29, 2019

That Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson lightweight title fight we’ve all been awaiting for years? Expect to go down in the first quarter of 2020. That’s right from the lips of UFC President Dana White, who recently updated on the matchup in a chat with The Schmo.

Tom Taylor - October 29, 2019

Corey Anderson, who is set to take on red-hot prospect Johnny Walker at UFC 244 this weekend, has been calling for big-name opponents in the light heavyweight division for some time. Unfortunately, the UFC does not feel he’s earned these high-profile fights quite yet. At least, that’s what they told him. Speaking to MMA Fighting ahead of UFC 244, Anderson recalled a recent meeting with UFC brass, during which he was told he doesn’t deserve high-profile because he’s not a so-called “needle-mover.”

Adam Martin - October 29, 2019

A rematch between former Bellator lightweight champion Michael Chandler and former UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson has been added to Bellator Japan. Bellator recently announced the rematch, which will serve as the co-main event on the Bellator Japan card, which takes place on December 29 at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. The fight will be contested at a catchweight of 160lbs.

Tom Taylor - October 29, 2019

The official UFC rankings have been updated in the wake of last Saturday’s UFC Singapore card, and as expected, former ONE and Bellator champ Ben Askren has taken a tumble down the welterweight rankings after losing to Demian Maia in the main event. In victory, Maia has hiked up four spots to No. 6.

Tom Taylor - October 29, 2019

Nate Diaz is one of the most entertaining fighters in the game, and he knows it. Unfortunately, Diaz does not think particularly highly of many of his peers. Ahead of his UFC 244 with Jorge Masvidal — one of the few men he does respect — Diaz took a shot at many of the other fighters that populate the UFC roster, criticizing them for fighting to win at the expense of entertainment.

Cole Shelton - October 29, 2019

Kevin Lee is set to return to the lightweight division at UFC 244 in New York. There, the “Motown Phenom” will be taking on the undefeated Gregor Gillespie in a very risky fight. In fact, Lee says this is the stupidest fight he could have taken, but it’s a scrap he wanted to take nonetheless.

Harry Kettle - October 29, 2019

UFC commentators Dan Hardy and John Gooden have broken down the ins and outs of UFC 244’s fantastic main event between Jorge Masvidal and Nate Diaz. With just a few days remaining until the two popular welterweights square off at Madison Square Garden, the hype for the showdown is at an all-time high. Both men have unique and interesting styles, which is one of the primary reasons as to why it isn’t exactly surprising to see a “BMF” Championship being on the line for the winner.

Mike Pendleton - October 28, 2019

With the ‘BMF’ title on the line in the main event of Nate Diaz vs Jorge Masvidal at UFC 244, the man who created the belt, says it’s the only belt he’s focused on. In a taped interview with Ariel Helwani of ESPN, Diaz discussed why the ‘BMF’ title matters most and why he gives it the most importance. For Nate Diaz, the fight against Jorge Masvidal is what the belt is all about, no matter what the UFC has their sights set on.

Mike Pendleton - October 28, 2019

Douglas Lima is once again the Bellator MMA welterweight champion and is also $1 million richer after defeating Rory MacDonald at Bellator 232. It was a tough day road through the Welterweight World Grand Prix for Lima to get his title back and while he’s back at the top, a former opponent of his is seeing his career go in the opposite direction. Back in 2012, after going on a three-fight winning streak to start his Bellator career, Lima would face then Bellator welterweight champion Ben Askren for the championship, and it was “Funky” coming out victorious at Bellator 64.