MMA News

BJ Penn Staff - May 19, 2025

Claressa Shields is done with MMA. Shields, 30, is best known for her boxing accolades. The Flint, Michigan native has held titles in five weight classes, and is considered one of the best female boxers of all time. However, several years ago, she boldly transitioned into MMA.

BJ Penn Staff - May 19, 2025

Jairzinho Rozenstruik is no longer a member of the UFC heavyweight roster, but is combat sports career will continue. It was recently announced that the Surinamese striking specialist has signed with Mike Perry’s Dirty Boxing promotion, which uses a ruleset that mixes elements of boxing and MMA. He will headline the promotion’s second event, taking on Devon Schwan on June 14 in Miami. Schwan may not be a name many fans recognize, but he does have some notable experience. In his last fight, he defeated Jesse Pringle in the BKFC ring. Before that, he was knocked out in Dana White’s Power Slap. Yes, you read that correctly. He lost his lone MMA fight in 2011.

BJ Penn Staff - May 19, 2025

Paddy Pimblett has something special in mind for a potential fight with fellow UFC star Ilia Topuria. England’s Pimblett is currently ranked No. 8 in the UFC lightweight division, and is probably just a few more wins from a crack at the division’s title. That title, of course, was recently vacated by long-time champion Islam Makhachev, who is headed up to welterweight. That cleared the way for Spain’s Topuria, the former featherweight champ, to battle Charles Oliveira for the vacant belt in his lightweight debut. The fight goes down at UFC 317 on June 28.

Cole Shelton - May 19, 2025

Ian Machado Garry has taken aim at Jack Della Maddalena over his performance at UFC 315. Della Maddalena beat Belal Muhammad by decision to win the welterweight title. The Aussie was able to keep the fight standings and landed the more damaging shots. Although Della Maddalena pulled off the upset, Machado Garry felt like the Aussie wasn’t all that impressive in the win.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 19, 2025

Has Jon Jones worn Tom Aspinall out? Much has been made over the holdup in the UFC heavyweight division. Jones has been the champion since March 2023, but he’s only had one title defense. He has yet to face Aspinall, who has held the interim gold since Nov. 2023. Aspinall even has his own successful title defense.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 19, 2025

One well-known MMA personality believes that Islam Makhachev purposely avoided Ilia Topuria. Makhachev will be vacating the UFC Lightweight Championship once Topuria vs. Charles Oliveira begins at UFC 317. The UFC lightweight title defense recordholder is moving up to challenge UFC Welterweight Champion Jack Della Maddalena at some point. Topuria labeled Makhachev a “coward” for refusing to fight him.

Harry Kettle - May 19, 2025

Kelvin Gastelum has reflected on his iconic fight against Israel Adesanya ahead of his upcoming UFC Hall of Fame induction. At UFC 316, Kelvin Gastelum will make his return to the cage when he battles rising prospect Joe Pyfer. In the eyes of many, this is a great opportunity for Pyfer to reach the next level in his pursuit of UFC gold – whereas the popular belief is that Kelvin is now playing the role of ‘gatekeeper’ for many of these young prospects.

Harry Kettle - May 19, 2025

UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones has provided an update on his immediate future and a possible return fight. Jon Jones is easily one of the biggest stars in the history of mixed martial arts. However, he’s also been involved in a lot of controversies throughout the course of his career. Nowadays, the big problem is that he doesn’t appear to be all too interested in the idea of unifying his heavyweight title in a UFC superfight against interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall.

Harry Kettle - May 19, 2025

Former UFC star Darren Till has given his thoughts on potential boxing matches against the likes of Jake Paul or Tommy Fury. Since leaving the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Darren Till hasn’t really put too much effort or focus into mixed martial arts. Instead, he’s put a lot of attention into boxing. He’s been fairly successful up to this point but many are still eager to see him throw down against a bigger name, with two of the most popular names being Jake Paul and Tommy Fury.

Harry Kettle - May 19, 2025

Justin Gaethje’s manager is of the belief that he should be the next number one contender for the UFC lightweight title. As we know, Justin Gaethje is an absolute warrior and a fan favorite in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He also happens to be one of the most exciting lightweights in all of mixed martial arts. Following on from his recent short notice win over Rafael Fiziev, many have wondered where he fits into the title conversation at this point in his career.

BJPENN.COM Staff - May 19, 2025

ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Champion Jonathan Haggerty believes he’s got the goods to finally defeat former flyweight Muay Thai king Rodtang Jitmuangnon. The duo have gone to war on two previous occasions. Their first came in 2019, where Rodtang dethroned the Brit after five rounds. The sequel came in January 2020 as “The Iron Man” once again defeated Haggerty — this time, by third-round TKO.

BJPENN.COM Staff - May 19, 2025

ONE Interim Strawweight Kickboxing World Champion Jonathan Di Bella is open to a Muay Thai quest. But not before he unifies the division’s gold against Prajanchai PK Saenchai. The Canadian-Italian striker captured the interim strap this past March at ONE 172. He outstruck former two-division king Sam-A Gaiyanghadao, earning the unanimous decision victory.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 18, 2025

Patchy Mix is the newest member of the UFC roster, but he didn’t ink the deal solely for big paydays. Mix is a former Bellator champion who many experts and fans were pounding the table for the UFC to sign. He was under contract with PFL, but the two sides mutually agreed to part ways. Mix had been mostly inactive after PFL’s acquisition of Bellator.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 18, 2025

Paddy Pimblett has been feuding with Ilia Topuria for years, but he admits that if “El Matador” wins the UFC lightweight gold, it would benefit his career. Topuria will get a crack at the vacant UFC Lightweight Championship on June 28. He’ll share the Octagon with Charles Oliveira in the main event of UFC 317 in Las Vegas. Islam Makhachev will vacate the 155-pound gold as soon as the bout begins, as he’ll be challenging Jack Della Maddalena for the welterweight title at some point.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 18, 2025

Ilia Topuria has no plans on giving Islam Makhachev a bout right away if things don’t pan out for the soon-to-be former UFC lightweight champion at 170 pounds. Makhachev will be vacating the UFC Lightweight Championship the moment Topuria’s fight with Charles Oliveira begins. Topuria and Oliveira will be fighting for the vacant 155-pound title at UFC 317 on June 28. Makhachev is moving on to challenge Jack Della Maddalena for the UFC Welterweight Championship.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 18, 2025

Jose Aldo has shared more details on his decision to walk away from pro MMA competition. If the retirement sticks, then Aldo’s final bout took place on May 10 at UFC 315. He lost a controversial decision to Aiemann Zahabi and decided it was time to hang up the gloves. The former two-time UFC featherweight titleholder has also insisted that he’s likely done with combat sports altogether, not just MMA.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 18, 2025

Michael Morales continues to grow his stock, and he’s looking towards the future following UFC Vegas 106. Morales shared the Octagon with Gilbert Burns inside the UFC Apex this past Saturday. It was one-way traffic in favor of Morales, who timed the one-time title challenger on the feet. Burns took his opponent to the mat, but he failed to maintain control and he was ultimately stopped via TKO.

Chris Taylor - May 17, 2025

The Octagon returned to Nevada for tonight’s UFC Vegas 106 event, and four fighters wound up taking home performance bonuses. Tonight’s fight card was headlined by a highly anticipated welterweight contest featuring Gilbert Burns taking on Michael Moralez. The bout proved to be a coming out party for the now ‘and still undefeated’ Michael Morales. The Ecuadorian powerhouse was able to get the better of Gilbert Burns in the striking right from the opening horn, landing some powerful shots that ultimately forced ‘Durinho’ to dive in for a takedown. While Burns was successful in that attempt, it took just mere seconds for Morales to get back to his feet where he proceeded to smash the former title challenger with a plethora of heavy shots. After a pair of knockdowns, referee Herb Dean had seen enough and stepped in to call a stop to the contest.