UFC News
Jamahal Hill weighs in on Sean O’Malley’s decision to fight Marlon Vera over top contender Merab Dvalishvili: “It's unfortunate he does have that storyline with him”
Harry Kettle - September 8, 2023
Jamahal Hill has given his thoughts on Sean O’Malley wanting to fight rival Marlon Vera ahead of Merab Dvalishvili. Last month, Sean O’Malley knocked out Aljamain Sterling to become the new UFC bantamweight champion. As you can imagine, there was a lot of speculation in the immediate aftermath regarding who he’d defend against first. A Sterling rematch was deemed possible, but you also have Merab Dvalishvili waiting for his opportunity too.
Valentina Shevchenko vows to “destroy” Alexa Grasso in rematch at Noche UFC: “I go there to take what is mine”
Harry Kettle - September 8, 2023
Valentina Shevchenko has vowed to destroy Alexa Grasso when they collide in their title rematch next weekend. Back in March, Alexa Grasso shocked the world. She submitted Valentina Shevchenko to capture the UFC flyweight championship, bringing an end to what was a dominant reign.
Dan Hardy explains why Jon Jones is not "gonna stick around" after UFC 295: "They took his d**k pills away from him"
Chris Taylor - September 7, 2023
Dan Hardy has a theory as to why UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones isn’t “gonna stick around” after fighting Stipe Miocic at UFC 295. Jones (27-1 MMA) is scheduled to defend his heavyweight title Stipe Miocic (20-4 MMA) on November 11 at Madison Square Garden in New York. ‘Bones’ of course captured the promotion’s heavyweight crown earlier this year when he submitted Ciryl Gane in the first round of their fight at UFC 285.
Tai Tuivasa claims Alexander Volkov's chin "is not as strong as it needs to be" ahead of UFC 293
Cole Shelton - September 7, 2023
Tai Tuivasa doesn’t think Alexander Volkov’s chin will be able to take his punches at UFC 293. Tuivasa and Volkov are set to throw down in the co-headliner of Saturday’s UFC 293 event in Sydney, Australia. It’s a hometown fight for Tuivasa and he’s looking for redemption as he’s on a two-fight losing streak and will be making the walk to the Octagon for the first time in 2023.
WATCH | Manel Kape and Israel Adesanya get into heated shouting match at UFC 293 press conference
Josh Evanoff - September 7, 2023
Things got heated between Manel Kape and Israel Adesanya at the UFC 293 presser earlier today. ‘The Last Stylebender’ is currently slated to return this Saturday night against Sean Strickland. For his part, Israel Adesanya enters the matchup fresh off his championship rematch with Alex Pereira at UFC 287. In April, he scored a second-round knockout win over ‘Poatan’ to win the gold.
WATCH | Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou faceoff ahead of boxing match in October
Cole Shelton - September 7, 2023
Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou had a faceoff ahead of their highly-anticipated boxing match on Oct. 28 in Saudi Arabia. With the fight still over a month away, the two held a press conference in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to help promote the fight. Although Fury is a sizeable betting favorite, the fight is still intriguing as Ngannou has legit one-punch KO power.
UFC 293 | Pro fighters make their picks for Israel Adesanya vs. Sean Strickland title fight
Cole Shelton - September 7, 2023
In the main event of UFC 293, the middleweight title is up for grabs as Israel Adesanya looks to defend his belt against Sean Strickland. Heading into the scrap, Adesanya is a massive -720 favorite while the American is a +450 underdog on FanDuel. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. To no surprise, the majority of the pros are picking Adesanya to defend his belt with ease, although some are rooting for Strickland to pull off the upset.
Merab Dvalishvili reacts after Sean O’Malley claims he knocked him out at UFC 292
Susan Cox - September 7, 2023
Merab Dvalishvili is reacting after Sean O’Malley claims he knocked him out at UFC 292. It was in fact Sean O’Malley (17-1 MMA) vs Aljamain Sterling (23-4 MMA) this past August at UFC 292. The main event title fight saw O’Malley defeat ‘Funk Master’ by TKO at 0:51 of round 2 to claim the bantamweight belt.
Michael Bisping shares his thoughts on the middleweight GOAT debate: “He’s got the better style so far”
Susan Cox - September 7, 2023
Former UFC champion Michael Bisping is sharing his thoughts on the middleweight GOAT debate. It was during a recent video uploaded to his YouTube channel that former UFC middleweight champion, Michael Bisping, articulated who he feels is deserving of GOAT (Greatest Of All Time) status in the middleweight division:
Dricus Du Plessis advised he better “show up” at UFC 293 or risk losing a title shot
Susan Cox - September 7, 2023
Dricus Du Plessis is being advised that he better ‘show up’ at UFC 293 or he’ll risk losing a shot at the title. UFC 293 takes place this coming weekend, on Saturday, September 9th at the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia.
Sean O’Malley claims he knocked out Merab Dvalishvili the same night he finished Aljamain Sterling: “They’re the same person”
Harry Kettle - September 7, 2023
Sean O’Malley has teased Merab Dvalishvili and Aljamain Sterling as he continues to enjoy life as champion. Last month, Sean O’Malley knocked out Aljamain Sterling to claim the UFC bantamweight championship. As you can imagine, this represented a seismic shift in the division, with ‘Suga’ taking over as the new king. Naturally, many other fighters in the top 10 have been calling for a showdown against the champ.
Marlon Vera reacts after UFC champion Sean O’Malley calls out boxing star Gervonta Davis
Harry Kettle - September 7, 2023
Marlon Vera has given his thoughts on Sean O’Malley once again calling out Gervonta Davis for a superfight. Last month, Sean O’Malley shocked the world by knocking out Aljamain Sterling to become the new UFC bantamweight champion. While some weren’t too surprised by the result, the manner of his victory was certainly memorable.
Israel Adesanya highly doubts Sean Strickland will follow through on “man dance” proclamation: “He’s selling wolf tickets when he talks about that”
Harry Kettle - September 7, 2023
Israel Adesanya doesn’t believe that Sean Strickland will do the “man dance” with him when they collide at UFC 293. This Saturday night, Israel Adesanya will defend his UFC middleweight championship when he goes head to head with Sean Strickland. It will serve as the first time he’s defended the strap in his second reign, following his knockout win over Alex Pereira earlier this year.
Alexa Grasso presented with custom belt from UFC President Dana White: "This will be her championship belt"
Zain Bando - September 6, 2023
“UFC Noche” is nearly a week away, and the promotion is pulling out all the stops to ensure the event captures the essence of Mexican Independence Day. Dana White admitted the UFC missed the boat on bringing the Mexican fanbase the best event possible. Still, it’s a near-perfect alternative with Alexa Grasso as the headliner in the highly-anticipated flyweight title rematch against Valentina Shevchenko. White posted a newly minted surprise for Alexa Grasso, who upset then-champion Shevchenko in March at UFC 285. A UFC champion is getting a custom-made country-themed belt for the first time in promotional history. Not to be confused with the lineal title; however, White revealed Alexa Grasso will get to keep the custom belt, win or lose.
Israel Adesanya explains why he believes Alexander Volkanovski is "the greatest fighter of all time"
Cole Shelton - September 6, 2023
Israel Adesanya believes Alexander Volkanovski has cemented himself as the GOAT. Volkanovski is the UFC’s current featherweight champion and is undefeated in the weight class. He has only two career losses on his record, one which came on the regional scene at welterweight and the other at 155lbs to Islam Makhachev for the UFC lightweight title. However, that fight was close and some thought Volkanovski did enough to get the win.
Sean O'Malley claims he lost Marlon Vera fight "on purpose" to have the rematch be "my biggest fight"
Cole Shelton - September 6, 2023
Sean O’Malley says he lost to Marlon Vera back at UFC 252 on purpose as he knew it would set up a massive rematch. In the co-main event of UFC 252, O’Malley was set for the toughest test of his career as he was facing Vera in an intriguing matchup. O’Malley entered the fight as a sizeable betting favorite but a leg kick from Vera caused ‘Suga’ to keep rolling his ankle. ‘Chito’ eventually won the fight by ground-and-pound TKO.
Mike Perry says he never considered going back to the UFC in free agency because "the pay cut would have been too massive"
Cole Shelton - September 6, 2023
Mike Perry says he never thought about going back to the UFC during his free agency. After Perry scored a TKO win over Luke Rockhold at BKFC 41 in April of this year, he had fought out his deal with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship. Immediately, many fans were curious to see if he would go back to the UFC or if he would stay with BKFC.
Chepe Mariscal eyes a KO win or the "Fight of the Night" against Jack Jenkins at UFC 293: "I love going to enemy territory"
Cole Shelton - September 6, 2023
Chepe Mariscal is excited to go down to Australia at UFC 293 and fight in enemy territory. Mariscal is coming off his UFC debut back in June when he beat Trevor Peek by decision in a very fan-friendly fight. After the performance, he wasn’t sure what would be next, but he wanted a quick turnaround, which is what he got.