UFC News
Leon Edwards claims he tried fight on January 20, and Chimaev "straight after," but UFC refused
Tom Taylor - January 5, 2021
Leon Edwards claims he wanted to fight Michael Chiesa or Neil Magny on January 20, and then Khamzat Chimaev immediately after, but the UFC wasn’t on board. Edwards was originally scheduled to fight Chimaev in the main event of the January 20 card, which will go down on Fight Island. Regrettably, Chimaev was forced out of the matchup due to lingering health issues stemming from a COVID-19 infection.
Gilbert Burns predicts Jon Jones heavyweight run will end badly: "I don't like that"
Tom Taylor - January 5, 2021
UFC welterweight contender Gilbert Burns believes Jon Jones’s move up to the heavyweight division will probably end in disaster. Jones, the long-time UFC light heavyweight champion, recently vacated his title with plans to climb up to heavyweight. While his debut in the division is not yet set, he’s expected to fight the winner of an unscheduled title fight between champion Stipe Miocic and challenger Francis Ngannou.
Andrei Arlovski returns to the Octagon on February 20 against Tom Aspinall
Adam Martin - January 5, 2021
Former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski returns to the Octagon on February 20 against rising prospect Tom Aspinall. On Tuesday, Arlovski vs. Aspinall i was officially announced for the February 20 card, which is headlined by a five-round heavyweight contest between top-five contenders Derrick Lewis and Curtis Blaydes. It’s a great matchup between a former champion in the Belarusian Arlovski and a rising star in the Brit Aspinall.
Dillon Danis says Khabib Nurmagomedov grappling match would be "easy work"
Tom Taylor - January 5, 2021
Dillon Danis says a grappling match with undefeated UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov would be “easy work.” Nurmagomedov, who recently announced his retirement from mixed martial arts, is widely considered one of the best grapplers in the history of the sport. Yet Danis, a decorated Brazilian jiu jitsu blackbelt, believes he could make quick work of the unbeaten Russian in a straight grappling match.
Michael Chandler believes he can "entice" Khabib Nurmagomedov out of retirement with right strategy at UFC 257
Tom Taylor - January 5, 2021
Michael Chandler believes he might be able to “entice” Khabib Nurmagomedov out of retirement if he employs the right strategy in his UFC debut. Chandler, the former Bellator lightweight champion, is slated to make his first steps into the Octagon at UFC 257, when he’ll take on New Zealand’s Dan Hooker.
Kamaru Usman vs. Gilbert Burns gets new date, goes down at UFC 258
Tom Taylor - January 5, 2021
A long-awaited welterweight title fight between Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns has a new date. It’s now scheduled for UFC 258 on February 12. News of this bout was first reported by Combate and has now been confirmed by MMA Fighting.
Tony Ferguson reflects on tough year, promises "biggest and meanest" version of 'El Cucuy' in 2021
Adam Martin - January 4, 2021
UFC lightweight contender Tony Ferguson reflected on what was a tough year for him in 2020, promising to be “biggest and meanest” in 2021. Ferguson had a very tough year in 2020 for various reasons. The calendar started off with Ferguson being booked to fight UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov in Brooklyn back in April, but the COVID-19 pandemic meant that fight fell apart for the fifth time. Instead of getting his dream matchup against Nurmagomedov, Ferguson instead fought Justin Gaethje for the interim belt at UFC 249 and he suffered a vicious fifth-round TKO defeat.
UFC Twitter account sends out DMs stating Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor 2 is now for the lightweight title
Drake Riggs - January 4, 2021
The first UFC pay-per-view event of 2021 will see the returning Conor McGregor rematch Dustin Poirier — and it may end up being for a title after all. On Monday, those within the MMA community began revealing Twitter messages that they received from the official UFC Twitter account about UFC 257 event info. This, of course, is the event where Poirier and McGregor will be headlining on Jan. 23.
Michael Chandler explains why Tony Ferguson fight fell apart: “The situation was definitely mismanaged”
Cole Shelton - January 4, 2021
Michael Chandler wanted to have his UFC debut against Tony Ferguson, but that did not come to fruition. After Chandler signed with the UFC, it was reported he would be on the UFC 254 card against Ferguson. However, negotiations stalled, and the former Bellator lightweight champion ended up being the backup fighter for the Gaethje vs. Khabib title fight. Now, as Chandler is set to face Dan Hooker at UFC 257, Chandler explained why the Ferguson fight didn’t happen.
Michael Chandler claims he's a "nightmare" matchup for Conor McGregor
Cole Shelton - January 4, 2021
Michael Chandler is confident in his skill set as he believes he is a nightmare matchup for Conor McGregor. In the co-main event of UFC 257, Michael Chandler will finally make his Octagon debut against Dan Hooker in an intriguing matchup. If the former Bellator lightweight champion wins, he will likely be in line for a big fight against someone like Justin Gaethje, or the winner of Conor McGregor vs. Dustin Poirier 2. If it happens to be the latter, and McGregor wins, Chandler believes he would get his hand raised.
Derrick Lewis vs. Curtis Blaydes rebooked to headline February event
Cole Shelton - January 4, 2021
Derrick Lewis and Curtis Blaydes will still fight one another. Originally, Derrick Lewis and Blaydes were supposed to headline the November 28 card, but Blaydes tested positive for COVID-19. The hope was to have the fight rescheduled for January, but according to ESPN’s Ariel Helwani, the fight will headline the February 20 card.
Aleksandar Rakic hopes for light heavyweight title shot with win over Thiago Santos
Adam Martin - January 4, 2021
UFC light heavyweight contender Aleksandar Rakic is hoping to earn himself a title shot with a victory over veteran Thiago Santos at UFC 259. Rakic takes on Santos on the undercard of UFC 259: Blachowicz vs. Adesanya on March 23. Rakic, the No. 4 light heavyweight in the UFC, is 5-1 overall in the UFC and he’s coming off of a decision win over Anthony Smith in his last fight. The Austria native is closing in on the elite of the UFC light heavyweight division and a win over Santos, a former title challenger, would be massive.
Rose Namajunas "is ready to fight," says manager
Tom Taylor - January 4, 2021
Rose Namajunas is ready to challenge Weili Zhang for the UFC strawweight title, according to the pair’s manager Brian Butler. UFC President Dana White recently claimed that Namajunas, the division’s former champion, isn’t interested in challenging Zhang in a bid to reclaim the title, and that Carla Esparza could get the opportunity in her stead.
Neil Magny believes UFC's push of Khamzat Chimaev could be "a positive for everybody”
Tom Taylor - January 4, 2021
Neil Magny has no objection to the big promotional push the UFC is giving Khamzat Chimaev. In fact, he’s on board with it. Khamzat Chimaev is one of the most hyped fighters on the UFC roster at present, despite being just 3-0 in the promotion with all of his wins coming against unranked foes.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk breaks down Jan Blachowicz vs. Israel Adesanya
Adam Martin - January 4, 2021
Former UFC strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk broke down the upcoming 205lbs matchup between Jan Blachowicz and Israel Adesanya. Jedrzejczyk and Blachowicz have been friends for years as they are two of the best fighters to ever come out of Poland. Ahead of Blachowicz’s upcoming title defense at UFC 259 for the UFC light heavyweight championship against Israel Adesanya, Jedrzejczyk spoke to South China Morning Post and broke down the matchup. While she acknowledges that she has a close friendship with Blachowicz, she also admits Adesanya is a unique challenge.
Jake Paul would "beat the sh*t out of" Conor McGregor, says Ali Abdelaziz
Tom Taylor - January 4, 2021
MMA manager Ali Abdelaziz believes YouTube star Jake Paul would “beat the sh*t” out of Conor McGregor if they met in the boxing ring. Paul has been the talk of the combat sports world since he knocked out former NBA star Nate Robinson in a boxing match late last year. Since that win, he’s kept his name in the headlines by calling out a number of MMA stars, most notably, McGregor.
Anthony Hernandez forced to withdraw from slated UFC Fight Night 184 bout against Rodolfo Vieira
Harry Kettle - January 4, 2021
UFC middleweight Anthony Hernandez has been forced to withdraw from his proposed fight against Rodolfo Vieira at UFC Fight Night 184. Hernandez last fought inside the Octagon back in May 2020 when he was beaten by Kevin Holland, kickstarting the latter’s phenomenal rise to prominence last year. On the flip side, Vieira holds an unbeaten record of 7-0 in his professional career with two of those wins coming in the UFC via submission over Saparbek Safarov and Oskar Piechota.
Dan Henderson serves up a nasty low kick for his daughter’s boyfriend on New Year's Eve
Harry Kettle - January 4, 2021
MMA legend Dan Henderson gave his daughter’s boyfriend a gift he won’t forget on New Year’s Eve – a swift low kick to the knee. Henderson hasn’t been seen inside the Octagon since back at UFC 204 when he failed to beat rival Michael Bisping for the UFC Middleweight Championship in October 2016.