MMA News

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 14, 2025

Gilbert Burns never considered turning down a fight with Michael Morales. Burns is a well-respected veteran in MMA, and he’s competed against elite competition under the UFC banner. While “Durinho” is on a three-fight skid, his losses have been against current UFC Welterweight Champion Jack Della Maddalena, former titleholder Belal Muhammad, and the No. 1-ranked Sean Brady.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 14, 2025

A UFC Hall of Famer and color commentator doesn’t believe Islam Makhachev rooted for Belal Muhammad to lose at UFC 315. Muhammad put the UFC Welterweight Championship at stake against Jack Della Maddalena in Montreal this past Saturday. Going into the fight, UFC CEO Dana White said that the outcome would have major implications on Makhachev’s next fight. Maddalena ended up defeating Muhammad to capture the 170-pound gold.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 14, 2025

A former UFC champion believes that Islam Makhachev has taken the title of lightweight GOAT from Khabib Nurmagomedov. Makhachev is ready to move on from 155 pounds. UFC CEO Dana White recently announced that Makhachev will be vacating the UFC Lightweight Championship to challenge Jack Della Maddalena for the welterweight gold. Makhachev ends his run at 155 pounds with the most successful UFC lightweight title defenses.

Harry Kettle - May 14, 2025

UFC star Charles Oliveira has promised a big performance when he goes head to head with Ilia Topuria at UFC 317. As announced earlier this week, Charles Oliveira will challenge for the UFC lightweight championship once again. He will do so in the main event of UFC 317 against Ilia Topuria, who has officially made the move up to the lightweight division. While everyone knows that ‘Do Bronx’ has a chance, Topuria is widely considered to be the favorite to walk away with the belt in this encounter.

Harry Kettle - May 14, 2025

Alexander Volkanovski is the latest fighter to question the judges after Jose Aldo’s controversial defeat at UFC 315. Last weekend, Jose Aldo competed for what was likely the final time in mixed martial arts. He squared off against Aiemann Zahabi in a brutal encounter and in the end, he lost via decision. While some thought it was a fair call from the judges, a lot of fans and pundits alike heavily questioned it, suggesting that Jose was the clear winner of the contest.

Harry Kettle - May 14, 2025

Islam Makhachev’s manager has praised him as he prepares to make the move from lightweight to welterweight. As we know, Islam Makhachev has decided to vacate the UFC lightweight championship and move to the welterweight division. He will challenge Jack Della Maddalena for the undisputed 170-pound title, with the decision being made after JDM was able to win the belt from Belal Muhammad at UFC 315.

Cole Shelton - May 14, 2025

Jack Hermansson will finally make his return to the Octagon at UFC 317 at the end of June. Hermansson last fought in February of 2024 when he beat Joe Pyfer by decision in a five-round main event. After that fight, Hermansson suffered some injuries that forced him to be on the sidelines and not be able to fight.

BJPENN.COM Staff - May 13, 2025

Two-sport ONE World Champion Prajanchai PK Saenchai acknowledges Jonathan Di Bella‘s impressive victory over Sam-A Gaiyanghadao this past March at ONE 172. However, the Thai superstar points out what he perceives as a critical gap in the interim strawweight kickboxing champion’s arsenal. Prajanchai’s primary observation centers on Di Bella’s apparent lack of finishing ability. The Canadian-Italian competitor has earned recognition for his fast-paced contests and technical proficiency throughout his career, qualities that have established him as a formidable challenge for the Thai standout.

BJPENN.COM Staff - May 13, 2025

British Muay Thai icon Liam Harrison possesses encyclopedic knowledge of the art of eight limbs in the United Kingdom. The veteran striker believes the moment is right for ONE Championship to make its debut on British shores. Over the past five years, ONE Championship has recruited exceptional talent from across the UK. Athletes like ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Champion Jonathan Haggerty, Nico Carrillo, and George Jarvis have established themselves as elite competitors on the global stage.

Cole Shelton - May 13, 2025

The PFL announced they have parted ways with bantamweight champion Patchy Mix. Mix won the Bellator bantamweight title in 2023 with a submission win over Sergio Pettis and has defended it once. Yet, after the PFL-Bellator merger, Mix only fought once and expressed his frustration with his lack of fights on social media.

Cole Shelton - May 13, 2025

UFC CEO Dana White has plenty of confidence that Jon Jones vs Tom Aspinall will happen. White announced the UFC 317 and UFC 319 main events, and neither is Jones defending his heavyweight title. Many fans were hoping Jones vs Aspinall would headline the International Fight Week on June 29 in Las Vegas, but that won’t happen as White announced the main event would be Ilia Topuria vs Charles Oliveira.

Cole Shelton - May 13, 2025

UFC CEO Dana White has officially announced Ilia Topuria will take on Charles Oliveira at UFC 317. International Fight Week is always one of the biggest events of the year, but the promotion had yet to announce the headliner. A key reason why was that Islam Makhachev, the lightweight champion, wanted to see how the main event played out, as if Jack Della Maddalena beat Belal Muhammad, he would be moving up to welterweight.

Cole Shelton - May 13, 2025

UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis believes Bo Nickal gave up and was broken mentally against Reinier de Ridder. Nickal suffered his first career loss to de Ridder by TKO, as he was hurt by knees to the body. Although de Ridder landed several heavy shots, Du Plessis believes Nickal should have been able to survive those, but instead just took the easy way out.

BJ Penn Staff - May 13, 2025

If Islam Makhachev moves up to the UFC welterweight division, he will find himself in the crosshairs of most of the weight class’s top fighters. That includes former champ Kamaru Usman. Makhachev is currently the No. 1-ranked pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC. He earned that lofty position as the promotion’s lightweight champion. He won the belt with a submission over the great Charles Oliveira in 2022, and has since defended the belt four times: twice against Alexander Volkanovski, and later against Dustin Poirier and Renato Moicano.

BJ Penn Staff - May 13, 2025

UFC legend Vitor Belfort has some big dreams for his life after fighting. Brazil’s Belfort debuted with the UFC way back in 1997. He enjoyed several prominent runs with the promotion. His final run came to an end after a knockout loss to Lyoto Machida in 2018. Highlights of his resume include a light heavyweight title win in 2004, multiple title challenges, and victories over stars like Luke Rockhold, Dan Henderson, and Michael Bisping.

Cole Shelton - May 13, 2025

Jack Della Maddalena doesn’t expect Islam Makhachev to be a welterweight for long. Della Maddalena became the UFC’s welterweight champion on Saturday with a hard-fought decision win over Belal Muhammad. After the fight, Makhachev confirmed he would be moving up to welterweight to try and get the second belt and become a champ-champ.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 13, 2025

Jon Jones has something to say to those who think he’s ducking Tom Aspinall. Many fans have grown tired of the delay in crowning an undisputed UFC Heavyweight Champion. Jones has held the gold since March 2023, while Aspinall has been the interim champion since Nov. 2023. Both Jones and Aspinall have successfully defended their titles once, yet a matchup between the two has yet to be made official.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - May 13, 2025

One longtime UFC veteran will keep his 15-year run intact. Not every fighter in MMA can remain competitive, regardless of their placement on the card. This is especially true in UFC, where a couple of bad performances, along with other factors, can lead to a release. In the case of one fan favorite, who won his most recent outing, his old contract expired and many wondered if this marked the end of the business relationship.