MMA News
What's next for Brian Ortega and Korean Zombie after UFC Fight Island 6?
Cole Shelton - October 19, 2020
In the main event of UFC Fight Island 6, Brian Ortega was returning after nearly two years away to battle Chan Sung Jung aka Korean Zombie. UFC president, Dana White said the winner would be getting the next title shot and it was Ortega getting the job done. “T-City” dominated the fight from start to finish and even dropped Zombie twice.
Aung La N Sang ready to hand Reinier de Ridder his first loss
Tom Taylor - October 19, 2020
Aung La N Sang, who currently holds the ONE middleweight and light heavyweight titles, never doubted he’d fight in 2020. Even amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Burmese champion had faith that ONE Championship would find a way to get him back into the cage. That faith proved well-placed, as he’s closing in on an October 30 middleweight title defense against unbeaten Dutchman Reinier de Ridder.
Joaquin Buckley says Donald Trump called Dana White about viral KO, adds he still works at Walgreens
Adam Martin - October 19, 2020
UFC middleweight Joaquin Buckley says U.S. President Donald Trump called Dana White after his viral KO, adding he still works at Walgreens. Buckley knocked out Impa Kasanganay in stunning fashion at UFC Fight Island 5 with a spinning back kick right to the dome. Buckley’s knockout went viral, with celebrities such as Kanye West giving him a shoutout on social media. The knockout also earned Buckley his first official UFC victory and gave him a much-needed $50,000 bonus award.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk lays out timeframe, terms for UFC return
Tom Taylor - October 19, 2020
Former UFC strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk has shared the timeframe for her return to the Octagon—and the likely terms for that return. Jedrzejczyk, one of the best female fighters of all time, has not fought since March, when she came up short to reigning UFC strawweight champion Weili Zhang in one of the best fights of all time.
UFC Fight Island 6 medical suspensions released
Tom Taylor - October 19, 2020
The medical suspensions for last Saturday’s UFC Fight Island 6 card have been released, and not many fighters are facing long sits. Because the UFC Fight Island 6 card occured on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi, outside the jurisdiction of a major athletic commission, the UFC handled medical suspensions for the card internally.
Brian Ortega opens up on changes that led to dominant "Korean Zombie" win
Tom Taylor - October 19, 2020
Brian Ortega has never looked better than he did in his Saturday night unanimous decision victory over “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung. Ortega’s win over the Korean topped the UFC Fight Island 6 card in Abu Dhabi. The fight was his first since a 2018 stoppage loss to Max Holloway, who was then the UFC featherweight champion.
Joe Rogan lauds Brian Ortega after "Korean Zombie" win
Tom Taylor - October 19, 2020
UFC commentator Joe Rogan has some high praise for Brian Ortega, who picked up a decision win over “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung last weekend. Ortega and The Korean Zombie met in the main event of UFC Fight Island 6 last Saturday. Ortega defeated his Korean rival with a clear-cut unanimous decision win.
Video | Dana White drops PPV opener for UFC 254
Tom Taylor - October 19, 2020
UFC President Dana White has shared the opening video for UFC 254, which goes down this Saturday on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi, UAE. UFC 254 will be topped by a dynamite lightweight title fight, as undefeated lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov seeks to defend his title against the division’s interim titleholder, Justin Gaethje. The matchup is being hailed by many as Nurmagomedov’s toughest test to date.
Football legend Cristiano Ronaldo throws his support behind Khabib Nurmagomedov ahead of UFC 254
Harry Kettle - October 19, 2020
Football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has thrown his support behind Khabib Nurmagomedov heading into UFC 254 this weekend. Khabib is gearing up for arguably the biggest fight of his career so far as he prepares to defend the UFC Lightweight Championship against Justin Gaethje. In the eyes of many, “The Highlight” serves as the biggest threat to the Russian’s title reign in the 155-pound division.
Benson Henderson sends heartfelt message to teammate The Korean Zombie: “Don’t dare be ashamed”
Adam Martin - October 18, 2020
Bellator lightweight contender Benson Henderson sent a heartfelt message to his teammate The Korean Zombie, calling TKZ “an inspiration.” Henderson and The Korean Zombie have trained together in Arizona the MMA Lab and Fight Ready so they are very familiar with each other, not to mention the fact they both fought together in the UFC and in the WEC. The two have become close friends over the years and so even when the other man is the one in the cage, it feels like the other is also in there.
Khabib Nurmagomedov says going 30-0 would be the Floyd Mayweather Jr. record of MMA
Adam Martin - October 18, 2020
UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov says his goal is to go 30-0 before he retires, pulling a Floyd Mayweather Jr. in the process. Mayweather retired with a perfect 50-0 record after stopping Conor McGregor in the 10th round of their superfight back in August 2017. Of course, Mayweather has teased a comeback over the last few years and may add to that mark, but considering how much money he made during his career and the perfect 50-0 mark attached to his name, you can see why he remains retired. The perfect 50-0 mark by Mayweather proves he’s one of the best to ever do it.
Henry Cejudo sends a message to Teofimo Lopez Jr: “Be a good babysitter and watch over Daddy’s belts!”
Adam Martin - October 18, 2020
Former UFC double champion Henry Cejudo sent a message to boxing star Teofimo Lopez Jr., telling him to be a “good babysitter” for the belts. On Saturday night, Lopez Jr. shocked the boxing world when he defeated Vasiliy Lomachenko via unanimous decision in a massive upset. Lopez Jr. outboxed the pound-for-pound great Lomachenko for the majority of the rounds as he staved off a late comeback to earn the decision. With the win, Lopez Jr. retained the IBF lightweight title and picked up the WBA, WBO, and The Ring title belts as well.
Brian Ortega explains why he cut his hair and why he will grow it back
Adam Martin - October 18, 2020
UFC featherweight contender Brian Ortega explained why he cut his hair before fighting The Korean Zombie and why he will grow it back. Ortega surprised fans and media when he stepped onto the scale Friday without any hair. Ortega is known for his luscious locks so seeing him shaved down to the bone was very surprising. Of course, Ortega’s lack of hair didn’t hurt him in the fight. Despite missing nearly two years of action with injuries, Ortega put on one of his best performances inside the Octagon yet as he defeated The Korean Zombie by decision.
Krzysztof Jotko announces he is out of his UFC on ESPN+ 39 fight against Makhmud Muradov, Kevin Holland fills in
Adam Martin - October 18, 2020
UFC middleweight contender Krzysztof Jotko announced he is out of his upcoming UFC on ESPN+ 39 fight against Makhmud Muradov. Jotko took to his social media on Sunday to announce that a broken toe will keep him out of action, knocking him out of his fight against Muradov in two weeks. Here’s what Jotko wrote on Twitter, noting that he had a rough time at training camp from the get-go.
Jon Jones shares high praise for “masterful KO artist” Thiago Santos, but once again buries Anthony Smith
Adam D Martin - October 18, 2020
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones credited former opponent Thiago Santos while once again taking a shot at rival Anthony Smith. Jones previously fought both Santos and Smith during his reign as the UFC light heavyweight champion. Jones squeaked by to win a split decision over Santos at UFC 239, but he dominated Smith in their title fight at UFC 235. Jones is not the UFC light heavyweight champion any longer, but he continues to take shots at his former rival Smith. There is no love lost between these two as Jones took another poke at “Lionheart.”
Report | Nurmagomedov forced out of UFC 254 clash with Morozov
Adam D Martin - October 18, 2020
UFC bantamweight prospect Umar Nurmagomedov, the cousin of Khabib, has been forced out of his UFC 254 contest against Sergei Morozov. Nurmagomedov is a highly-touted prospect who was set to make his Octagon debut next weekend at UFC 254 fighting on the undercard of his cousin Khabib’s pay-per-view. Unfortunately, Nurmagomedov fell ill and is out of the fight. Khabib himself took to social media to post on Instagram updates on his cousin, confirming that he had staph infection. It was so bad that the younger Nurmagomedov had to be hospitalized in Dubai.
Jun Yong Park has an interesting offer for Khamzat Chimaev following win at UFC Fight Island 6
Adam D Martin - October 18, 2020
UFC middleweight Jun Yong Park made an interesting offer to Khamzat Chimaev following a beatdown over John Phillips at UFC Fight Island 6. Park had a tremendous performance on Fight Island as he utterly beat down Phillips for a record-breaking unanimous decision win as he landed 258 total strikes on the ground. It wasn’t long ago that Phillips was in the same Fight Island arena fighting Chimaev back in July, losing in a very similar fashion (although Chimaev was able to put him away). Naturally, the parallels between Park and Chimaev are easy to see in this case.
Paige VanZant sees her Bare Knuckle Fighting debut postponed
Adam D Martin - October 18, 2020
Women’s fighting star Paige VanZant will see her Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) debut postponed until the new year. VanZant was one of BKFC’s big free-agent signings along with other former UFC fighters such as Thiago Alves and Hector Lombard. But VanZant was by far the biggest name of the bunch. The former top prospect in the UFC women’s divisions shocked the combat sports world when she decided to make the move from mixed martial arts to BKFC. Despite the dangers of BKFC when it comes to cuts, VanZant says she’s not worried.