MMA News
Leon Edwards claims he tried fight on January 20, and Chimaev "straight after," but UFC refused
Tom Taylor - January 5, 2021
Leon Edwards claims he wanted to fight Michael Chiesa or Neil Magny on January 20, and then Khamzat Chimaev immediately after, but the UFC wasn’t on board. Edwards was originally scheduled to fight Chimaev in the main event of the January 20 card, which will go down on Fight Island. Regrettably, Chimaev was forced out of the matchup due to lingering health issues stemming from a COVID-19 infection.
Gilbert Burns predicts Jon Jones heavyweight run will end badly: "I don't like that"
Tom Taylor - January 5, 2021
UFC welterweight contender Gilbert Burns believes Jon Jones’s move up to the heavyweight division will probably end in disaster. Jones, the long-time UFC light heavyweight champion, recently vacated his title with plans to climb up to heavyweight. While his debut in the division is not yet set, he’s expected to fight the winner of an unscheduled title fight between champion Stipe Miocic and challenger Francis Ngannou.
Andrei Arlovski returns to the Octagon on February 20 against Tom Aspinall
Adam Martin - January 5, 2021
Former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski returns to the Octagon on February 20 against rising prospect Tom Aspinall. On Tuesday, Arlovski vs. Aspinall i was officially announced for the February 20 card, which is headlined by a five-round heavyweight contest between top-five contenders Derrick Lewis and Curtis Blaydes. It’s a great matchup between a former champion in the Belarusian Arlovski and a rising star in the Brit Aspinall.
Demetrious Johnson admits he's "always had problems" with foes like Adriano Moraes
Tom Taylor - January 5, 2021
Former UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson admits he’s always had a bit of difficulty with fighters like his next opponent, Adriano Moraes. Johnson, widely regarded as the best fighter ever, is slated to challenge Moraes for the ONE Championship flyweight title on February 24.
Dillon Danis says Khabib Nurmagomedov grappling match would be "easy work"
Tom Taylor - January 5, 2021
Dillon Danis says a grappling match with undefeated UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov would be “easy work.” Nurmagomedov, who recently announced his retirement from mixed martial arts, is widely considered one of the best grapplers in the history of the sport. Yet Danis, a decorated Brazilian jiu jitsu blackbelt, believes he could make quick work of the unbeaten Russian in a straight grappling match.
Conor McGregor is "very good" at grappling, says Gilbert Burns
Tom Taylor - January 5, 2021
UFC welterweight contender Gilbert Burns believes Conor McGregor has “very good” Brazilian jiu jitsu, despite perceptions to the contrary. McGregor has long stood out as one of the most lethal strikers in MMA, with a long list of knockout wins to his credit. Yet many of the Irishman’s detractors—both fans and fighters—have suggested he’s lacking in the grappling department.
Michael Chandler believes he can "entice" Khabib Nurmagomedov out of retirement with right strategy at UFC 257
Tom Taylor - January 5, 2021
Michael Chandler believes he might be able to “entice” Khabib Nurmagomedov out of retirement if he employs the right strategy in his UFC debut. Chandler, the former Bellator lightweight champion, is slated to make his first steps into the Octagon at UFC 257, when he’ll take on New Zealand’s Dan Hooker.
Kamaru Usman vs. Gilbert Burns gets new date, goes down at UFC 258
Tom Taylor - January 5, 2021
A long-awaited welterweight title fight between Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns has a new date. It’s now scheduled for UFC 258 on February 12. News of this bout was first reported by Combate and has now been confirmed by MMA Fighting.
Tony Ferguson reflects on tough year, promises "biggest and meanest" version of 'El Cucuy' in 2021
Adam Martin - January 4, 2021
UFC lightweight contender Tony Ferguson reflected on what was a tough year for him in 2020, promising to be “biggest and meanest” in 2021. Ferguson had a very tough year in 2020 for various reasons. The calendar started off with Ferguson being booked to fight UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov in Brooklyn back in April, but the COVID-19 pandemic meant that fight fell apart for the fifth time. Instead of getting his dream matchup against Nurmagomedov, Ferguson instead fought Justin Gaethje for the interim belt at UFC 249 and he suffered a vicious fifth-round TKO defeat.
UFC Twitter account sends out DMs stating Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor 2 is now for the lightweight title
Drake Riggs - January 4, 2021
The first UFC pay-per-view event of 2021 will see the returning Conor McGregor rematch Dustin Poirier — and it may end up being for a title after all. On Monday, those within the MMA community began revealing Twitter messages that they received from the official UFC Twitter account about UFC 257 event info. This, of course, is the event where Poirier and McGregor will be headlining on Jan. 23.
Ben Askren trolls Bellator for having no 2021 events currently scheduled
Adam Martin - January 4, 2021
Former Bellator welterweight champion Ben Askren trolled his former promotion for not having any events booked for its 2021 schedule yet. The calendar just turned to 2021 and Bellator is looking to keep up its momentum after a strong end to 2020 following a long break due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Once Bellator returned to action in the summer, the promotion ran events from a bubble at the Mohegan and finished strong with a number of the promotion’s biggest stars fighting. Ahead of the 2021 season, Bellator has created more excitement by signing several big-name free agents.
Dana White sends warning to fight fans planning to illegally stream UFC 257
Cole Shelton - January 4, 2021
Dana White has sent a warning to any fight fans that plan on illegally streaming UFC 257. In the main event of UFC 257, Conor McGregor is set to face Dustin Poirier in a highly-anticipated fight. The event will do massive pay-per-view numbers but illegal streams have been a problem for combat sports so White plans on putting an end to that.
Michael Chandler claims he's a "nightmare" matchup for Conor McGregor
Cole Shelton - January 4, 2021
Michael Chandler is confident in his skill set as he believes he is a nightmare matchup for Conor McGregor. In the co-main event of UFC 257, Michael Chandler will finally make his Octagon debut against Dan Hooker in an intriguing matchup. If the former Bellator lightweight champion wins, he will likely be in line for a big fight against someone like Justin Gaethje, or the winner of Conor McGregor vs. Dustin Poirier 2. If it happens to be the latter, and McGregor wins, Chandler believes he would get his hand raised.
Derrick Lewis vs. Curtis Blaydes rebooked to headline February event
Cole Shelton - January 4, 2021
Derrick Lewis and Curtis Blaydes will still fight one another. Originally, Derrick Lewis and Blaydes were supposed to headline the November 28 card, but Blaydes tested positive for COVID-19. The hope was to have the fight rescheduled for January, but according to ESPN’s Ariel Helwani, the fight will headline the February 20 card.
Aleksandar Rakic hopes for light heavyweight title shot with win over Thiago Santos
Adam Martin - January 4, 2021
UFC light heavyweight contender Aleksandar Rakic is hoping to earn himself a title shot with a victory over veteran Thiago Santos at UFC 259. Rakic takes on Santos on the undercard of UFC 259: Blachowicz vs. Adesanya on March 23. Rakic, the No. 4 light heavyweight in the UFC, is 5-1 overall in the UFC and he’s coming off of a decision win over Anthony Smith in his last fight. The Austria native is closing in on the elite of the UFC light heavyweight division and a win over Santos, a former title challenger, would be massive.
Mike Perry gets stitched up after bloody incident
Tom Taylor - January 4, 2021
Controversial UFC welterweight star Mike Perry has gotten stitched up after a bizarre and bloody incident on Sunday night. The incident in question seemingly occured after Perry attempted to smash a sheet of glass with his foot. That decision left him laying in a pool of his own blood in a hallway—a concerning situation he shared with his fans via his Instagram story.
Neil Magny believes UFC's push of Khamzat Chimaev could be "a positive for everybody”
Tom Taylor - January 4, 2021
Neil Magny has no objection to the big promotional push the UFC is giving Khamzat Chimaev. In fact, he’s on board with it. Khamzat Chimaev is one of the most hyped fighters on the UFC roster at present, despite being just 3-0 in the promotion with all of his wins coming against unranked foes.
Tito Ortiz, Josh Barnett campaign for fight with retiring Fedor Emelianenko
Tom Taylor - January 4, 2021
Tito Ortiz and Josh Barnett have both expressed interest in fighting Fedor Emelianenko in the Russian legend’s final mixed martial arts bout. Emelianenko, 44, is expected to retire after his next bout, which will occur under the Bellator MMA banner.