MMA News
Khamzat Chimaev sizes up Darren Till as a potential opponent
Tom Taylor - October 15, 2020
Khamzat Chimaev has shared his thoughts on a potential showdown with ranked middleweight contender Darren Till. Till is currently ranked far above Chimaev. The British striking specialist has a spot in the middleweight division’s top-5, while the Chechen prospect is not yet ranked at middleweight or welterweight—the two divisions he competes in.
Joaquin Buckley shares funny encounter with St. Louis police officer after going viral
Adam Martin - October 15, 2020
UFC middleweight Joaquin Buckley shared a funny encounter with a St. Louis police officer after going viral on the internet in the last week. Buckley became an overnight celebrity with his incredible spinning back kick KO over Impa Kasanganay at last weekend’s UFC Fight Island 5 card. The KO went viral and was even picked up by rapper Kanye West. Buckley was not well known coming into the fight, with his other lone appearance in the UFC being a KO loss to Kevin Holland. But with the win over Kasanganay, Buckley is now one of the most talked-about fighters in the sport today.
Martin Nguyen vows to be the "best version" of himself against Thanh Le
Tom Taylor - October 15, 2020
ONE Championship featherweight titleholder Martin Nguyen says he’ll be better than ever when he steps into the cage with streaking challenger Thanh Le on October 30. The bout will be Nguyen’s first since August, 2019, and the champion is unsurprisingly very excited to get back into the cage—particularly when so many athletes are unable to compete during the coronavirus pandemic.
Darren Till trolls Khamzat Chimaev on Instagram
Tom Taylor - October 15, 2020
Top-5 UFC middleweight contender Darren Till has taken to Instagram to troll surging prospect Khamzat Chimaev. Till is currently scheduled to take on Jack Hermansson on December 5. While that fight is at the forefront of his focus, he recently admitted that he’d be willing to fight Chimaev after the fact.
Scott Coker says Fedor Emelianenko is "50/50" on a rematch with Fabricio Werdum
Adam Martin - October 15, 2020
Bellator president Scott Coker says that heavyweight legend Fedor Emelianenko is “50/50” on whether he wants a rematch with Fabricio Werdum. It’s been over 10 years since Werdum pulled off one of the biggest upsets in MMA history when he finished Emelianenko by submission in a Strikeforce fight in June 2010. Werdum would parlay that win over Emelianenko into a UFC contract, where he eventually became the promotion’s champion. As for Emelianenko, he was very up-and-down during the 2010s after being the fighter of the decade in the 2000s. In recent years, Emelianenko has found a home in Bellator, whose promoter Scott Coker is also close friends with Werdum.
Opening odds released for Petr Yan vs. Aljamain Sterling
Adam Martin - October 15, 2020
The opening odds have been released for the upcoming UFC bantamweight title fight between champion Petr Yan and challenger Aljamain Sterling. The UFC officially announced this week that Yan will make his first title defense against Sterling in the co-main event of UFC 256, which takes place on December 12. Sterling has been waiting for his title shot even since submitting Cory Sandhagen back at UFC 250 in June, while Yan is fresh off of a vicious fifth-round TKO win over Jose Aldo to win the belt.
Khamzat Chimaev reacts to potential Neil Magny bout
Tom Taylor - October 15, 2020
Khamzat Chimaev has reacted to the buzz surrounding a potential fight with long-time UFC welterweight contender Neil Magny. Chimaev was the breakout UFC star of summer, 2020. The Chechen-Swede first picked up two wins in the span of 10 days on Fight Island in July, defeating John Phillips by first-round submission and Rhys McKee by first-round TKO, then picked up his third win of the season when he knocked out Gerald Meerschaert at UFC Vegas 11, also in the first round.
The Chatri Sityodtong story: Suffering, sacrifice and success
bjpenndotcom - October 15, 2020
The life story of ONE Championship’s charismatic Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong is one that has been covered extensively by media all around the world. It’s one of the most inspiring tales of triumph over adversity and hardship, and perseverance despite overwhelming odds.
Pro fighters make their picks for Brian Ortega vs. Korean Zombie
Cole Shelton - October 15, 2020
In the main event of UFC Fight Island 6, Brian Ortega is returning to the Octagon after nearly two years away to battle Chan Sung Jung aka “the Korean Zombie.” Heading into the fight, Ortega is a +160 underdog while Jung is a -200 favorite. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The majority believe Korean Zombie will eventually land the knockout punch as the pros are worried about ring rust on Ortega’s side.
Joe Rogan expects Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr. to go for KO despite "exhibition" label
Tom Taylor - October 15, 2020
Joe Rogan believes Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr. will be looking for the knockout when they step into the ring together. Tyson and Jones, two legends of the boxing world, are expected to meet in a massive exhibition bout on November 28. Because this fight is an exhibition, neither man is supposed to be gunning for a knockout.
UFC 254: ‘Khabib vs Gaethje’ fight card receives shakeup following the removal of Islam Makhachev
Harry Kettle - October 15, 2020
The UFC 254 card has been hit by a late change as the Islam Makhachev vs. Rafael dos Anjos fight has been officially called off. Many fans were excited to see Makhachev get back into the cage and attempt to extend his current winning streak at UFC 254, but he won’t be doing so on Fight Island after it was announced that the aforementioned dos Anjos was pulled from the card as a result of a positive COVID-19 test.
Conor McGregor returns to boyhood football club in Ireland after funding clubhouse renovations
Harry Kettle - October 15, 2020
UFC star Conor McGregor made an appearance at Lourdes Celtic Football Club after assisting in their clubhouse renovation. There has been a great deal of speculation surrounding the future of McGregor as of late with the man himself confirming that he has accepted a fight against Dustin Poirier in January 2021.
Gillian Robertson expects to submit Poliana Botelho: "It’s no secret what my game plan is"
Cole Shelton - October 14, 2020
Gillian Robertson currently holds the most wins in the UFC’s flyweight division as well as the most submission wins by a woman in UFC history and thus she is looking to build off that at UFC Fight Island 6. Robertson got back into the win column with a submission win over Cortney Casey last time. Following the win, many expected the Canadian to get a ranked opponent next, but that wasn’t the case.
Anthony Johnson slams Paulo Costa over recent comments regarding his return to UFC
Christopher Taylor - October 14, 2020
Former UFC light heavyweight title challenger Anthony Johnson has issued a scathing response to recent middleweight title challenger Paulo Costa. Costa (13-1 MMA) put his undefeated mixed martial arts record on the line while hoping to dethrone middleweight champion Israel Adesanya (20-0 MMA) at last months UFC 253 pay-per-view event on Fight Island.
Jan Blachowicz shares interesting theory as to why Jon Jones vacated his light heavyweight belt
Cole Shelton - October 14, 2020
Jan Blachowicz has a theory as to why Jon Jones vacated his light heavyweight belt and now has a planned move up to heavyweight. At UFC 253, Blachowicz fought and beat Dominick Reyes to win the vacant light heavyweight title. Immediately after the fight, Jones tweeted asking fans if he should go try and reclaim his belt. Yet, for the Pole, he doesn’t think “Bones” has any interest in fighting him as he knows he would get knocked out.
Dustin Poirier responds to Nate Diaz: “If he wants to fight, let’s go. I’ll slap him up"
Cole Shelton - October 14, 2020
Dustin Poirier is down to fight Nate Diaz after the Stockton native’s recent comments. After Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier agreed to fight, Diaz was not happy and sent several tweets bashing them while suggesting that he beat them both. For “The Diamond” he doesn’t understand why Diaz thinks he beat him despite the fact they have never actually fought one another.
Fresh off "KO of the Year" contender, Joaquin Buckley returns at UFC 255 against Jordan Wright
Adam Martin - October 14, 2020
Fresh off of the 2020 “KO of the Year” contender, middleweight prospect Joaquin Buckley returns at UFC 255 against Jordan Wright. Buckley became an overnight phenomenom after scoring one of the greatest knockouts of all time against Impa Kasanganay at last Saturday’s UFC Fight Island 5 card. After suffering a brutal KO loss to Kevin Holland in his UFC deut back in August, Buckley was a big underdog against the undefeated Kasanganay. But he went in there and scored the upset when he landed an incredible spinning back kick that went viral on the internet.
Conor McGregor accepts the UFC’s offer to fight Dustin Poirier on January 23
Cole Shelton - October 14, 2020
Conor McGregor has accepted the UFC’s offer to fight Dustin Poirier. Over the last few weeks, McGregor and Poirier had agreed to an exhibition martial arts sparring match for charity. The UFC then stepped in and offered the fight to each other but the Irishman demanded it to be in 2020. Dana White and the UFC brass, meanwhile, made it clear January 23 is the soonest date they could do.