MMA News

Adam Martin - December 30, 2020

UFC president Dana White slammed YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul, suggesting that UFC women’s champion Amanda Nunes would put him in a coma. Paul has become one of the biggest names in combat sports ever since he scored a viral KO over Nate Robinson on the undercard of the Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. PPV. Since then, numerous high-profile boxers, UFC fighters, and even celebrities have called Paul out for a fight. Most recently he was connected to a matchup with Ben Askren, the former UFC welterweight. White has had some choice words about Paul in recent weeks for his choice of opponents, suggesting Nunes would KO him.

Cole Shelton - December 30, 2020

Israel Adesanya will look to become a UFC champ-champ in 2021. Ever since Jan Blachowicz became the light heavyweight champion, UFC president, Dana White has said he wants to make Blachowicz vs. Adesanya. Now, that is what happened as the UFC boss revealed to ESPN’s Brett Okamoto that the fight will take place on March 6 at UFC 259.

Cole Shelton - December 30, 2020

Dana White is still holding out hope he can book the rematch between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor. At UFC 229, Nurmagomedov and McGregor had their highly-anticipated fight with Nurmagomedov winning by fourth-round submission. However, it was a massive fight, and it broke the UFC’s record for the most pay-per-views of all-time.

Adam Martin - December 30, 2020

The opening betting odds have been released for the upcoming heavyweight bout between top contenders Alistair Overeem and Alexander Volkov. Overeem vs. Volkov is set as the five-round headliner of a UFC Fight Night card that is scheduled to take place on February 6. Overeem and Volkov are two of the top-10 heavyweights on the UFC roster and the winner of this bout will put themselves in a prime position to contend for the UFC heavyweight title by the end of 2021. Ahead of this upcoming bout, the oddsmakers have released the betting odds for the match. Check out the opening betting odds for Overeem vs. Volkov (via BestFightOdds).

Adam Martin - December 30, 2020

The price of purchasing a UFC pay-per-view card is about to get more costly for fans in 2021 as Disney and ESPN are raising their PPV prices. According to a report from Variety, Disney and ESPN plan on increasing the price of a UFC PPV from their current price of $64.99 (U.S. dollars) to $69.99 in 2021, starting with UFC 257: McGregor vs. Poirier 2. This follows on the heels of a price increase in 2018 when the price of a PPV went up from $59.99 to $64.99. Additionally, the cost of subscribing to a year of ESPN+ is set to rise from $49.99 to $59.99 in 2021. In the United States, fans must order the PPV cards through ESPN+, making it a necessity.

Tom Taylor - December 30, 2020

British MMA legend Brad Pickett says former Bellator middleweight champion Hector Lombard is a bit of a nightmare in the gym. Speaking to Fightful recently, Pickett looked back on some of his training sessions with Lombard, recounting a time the hulking Cuban flatlined a training partner in a warm-up round.

Tom Taylor - December 30, 2020

Khamzat Chimaev withdrew from his planned fight with Leon Edwards due to complications stemming from his recent COVID-19 infection, according to his manager. Chimaev was slated to fight Edwards in the main event of a card on Fight Island on January 20. Unfortunately, he was forced out of the bout earlier this week.

Adam Martin - December 30, 2020

UFC bantamweight contender Cory Sandhagen opened up as a big betting favorite for his upcoming battle against Frankie Edgar in early 2021. Sandhagen takes on Edgar on the undercard of the upcoming Alistair Overeem vs. Alexander Volkov card that is set for February 6 of next year. With the fight now official, the sportsbooks have released the opening betting odds for this intriguing Sandhagen vs. Edgar bout. Check out the opening odds below (via BestFightOdds).

Tom Taylor - December 30, 2020

Georges St-Pierre told fight fans he’d be making a special announcement on Wednesday, and he came through on that promise. Whether it’s the announcement fight fans were hoping for, however, is up for debate.

Tom Taylor - December 30, 2020

Coach Javier Mendez believes that if his star pupil, UFC lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov, retires, Dustin Poirier should fight for the vacant belt. Nurmagomedov announced his retirement after a submission victory over Justin Gaethje in October. That being said, he still hasn’t vacated the lightweight title, due primarily to the fact that UFC President Dana White hopes he’ll fight again.

Adam Martin - December 30, 2020

UFC women’s flyweight contender Joanne Calderwood says she is excited to punch rival Jessica Eye in the face and make her bleed at UFC 257. Calderwood meets Eye at UFC 257, which is set for January 23 on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi. Calderwood is the No. 7 ranked women’s flyweight while Eye is ranked No. 6, so this is an important matchup between top-10 ranked 125lbers. But for Scotland’s Calderwood, it’s more than just a fight. For her, this matchup with Eye is personal.

Tom Taylor - December 30, 2020

Daniel Cormier believes former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones deserves an immediate crack at the UFC light heavyweight title. Jones ruled over the UFC light heavyweight division for many years—battling Cormier twice in that span—but recently vacated his throne with plans to move up to heavyweight.

Tom Taylor - December 30, 2020

Minowaman, a legend among hardcore fight fans, is headed to the RIZIN Fighting Federation ring. The 44-year-old, who has competed in well over 100 mixed martial arts bouts and many pro wrestling matches, will take on jūryō-ranked sumo Tsuyoshi Sudario at RIZIN 26 inside the Saitama Super Arena on New Years Eve.

Harry Kettle - December 30, 2020

Top light heavyweight contenders will meet in late February as Magomed Ankalaev prepares to lock horns with Nikita Krylov. These two titans at 205 pounds will be hoping to make a statement to kickstart 2021 with both coming off the back of 2020 wins over legitimate names – Ion Cutelaba and Johnny Walker respectively.

Drake Riggs - December 29, 2020

Early into 2020, Weili Zhang and Joanna Jedrzejczyk put on an instant classic in what many are touting as the fight of the year. The co-main event of March’s UFC 248 pay-per-view saw the new strawweight champion from China defending opposite Poland’s former queen. For a full 25 minutes, they went to war.

Cole Shelton - December 29, 2020

Dillon Danis expects Conor McGregor to beat Dustin Poirier pretty quickly at UFC 257. On January 23, McGregor and Poirier will have their rematch six-and-a-half years in the making. The two first fought in September of 2014 with the Irishman winning by first-round knockout. For Danis, he believes the result at UFC 257 will be very similar as he expects his teammate to KO “The Diamond” inside two rounds.

Adam Martin - December 29, 2020

Bellator women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg teased her fans on social media that she has “big news soon” as Bellator heads into 2021. Taking to her social media ahead of the new year, Cyborg teased her fans that she has big news coming soon, all while tagging Bellator in the post, indicating a fight announcement. Check out what the Brazilian wrote on her social media below.

Tom Taylor - December 29, 2020

The bookmakers at BetOnline.ag are expecting fighters like Francis Ngannou, Israel Adesanya, and Petr Yan to conclude 2021 as UFC champions. This week, the sportsbook released betting lines for the champions of a number of UFC weight classes by the end of 2021.