UFC News

Mackenzie Dern
UFC

Mackenzie Dern says she has her eye on Valentina Shevchenko with future flyweight move

Adam D Martin - October 8, 2021

UFC women’s strawweight contender Mackenzie Dern says she has her eye on Valentina Shevchenko with a future move to the flyweight division. Dern returns to the Octagon this Saturday night when she faces off against Marina Rodriguez in a women’s strawweight bout that serves as the five-round headliner of UFC Vegas 39. For Dern, she is 6-1 in the UFC and she is currently ranked at No. 4 in the 115lbs weight class. If she is able to go out there and beat Rodriguez, there is certainly a chance that Dern could earn herself a title shot. Right now, her goal is to be the best strawweight in the world, so a win over Rodriguez would help get her to the top of the weight class, where the belt is currently held by the 115lbs champion, Rose Namajunas.

Kamaru Usman, Colby Covington
Kamaru Usman

Kamaru Usman lauds Colby Covington ahead of UFC 268: "I would put him in the top-15 welterweights of all time"

Adam D Martin - October 8, 2021

UFC welterweight champ Kamaru Usman lauded Colby Covington ahead of UFC 268, saying “I would put him in the top-15 welterweights of all time.” Usman takes on Covington in a rematch at UFC 268 next month in what is expected to be one of the most highly-anticipated fights of the year. The two rivals previously met at UFC 245 two years ago, with Usman winning via fifth-round TKO in an absolute war between the two welterweights. Two years later and the two will rematch with Usman’s belt on the line at UFC 268. But while most people would assume that Usman is not a fan of Covington, you’d be wrong. Speaking to Helen Yee, Usman admitted that while he is not a fan of Covington’s personality, he can admit that he has a top-15 welterweight of all time.

Kamaru Usman
Nick Diaz

Kamaru Usman thought Nick Diaz "did a great job" at UFC 266, suggests who he should fight next

Joe McDonagh - October 7, 2021

The Nigerian Nightmare, Kamaru Usman, was impressed by the performance of fan favorite Nick Diaz at UFC 266. Diaz squared off with former UFC welterweight champion Robbie Lawler at last month’s pay-per-view event. The contest served as Diaz’s first fight since 2015, and only his second since his 2013 loss to Georges St. Pierre.

Jon Jones, Dominick Reyes, UFC 247
Jon Jones

Dominick Reyes wants the UFC to keep Jon Jones after latest arrest so he can 'beat him up again'

Cole Shelton - October 7, 2021

Dominick Reyes is hoping the UFC keeps Jon Jones after his latest arrest so he can fight him and beat him up again. After Jones was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame for his first fight against Alexander Gustafsson, he was arrested early Friday morning in Las Vegas. He was charged with battery, domestic violence, and injuring and tampering with a vehicle and after the news came public, many wondered if he would fight again. For his last opponent, Dominick Reyes he says he hopes “Bones” gets another fight so he can beat him up again.

Jiri Prochazka, Dominick Reyes, UFC Vegas 25
Jiri Prochazka

Dominick Reyes opens up on loss to Jiri Prochazka: 'That was a wild, brutal fight'

Cole Shelton - October 7, 2021

Dominick Reyes has broken his silence on his loss to Jiri Prochazka. Back in May, Reyes suffered a brutal KO loss to Prochazka in one of the best fights of this year. It was his third loss in a row and since the fight, Reyes hasn’t spoken about it until he caught up with MMA reporter, James Lynch on Thursday to discuss the loss. He also revealed he has changed camps as he is now training at Xtreme Couture but is being cautious with his training as he still is healing his brain.

Rose-Namajunas
UFC

Rose Namajunas reacts to Zhang Weili's changes ahead of UFC 268: 'Whatever she did last time didn't work'

Drake Riggs - October 7, 2021

Rose Namajunas and Zhang Weili are set to lock horns once again. As their UFC 268 rematch draws near on Nov. 6, the former champion turned challenger in Zhang has made some changes by altering her appearance with a new hairstyle as well as moving her training camp stateside.

Zhang-weili
UFC 268

Zhang Weili reflects on Rose Namajunas' 'better dead than red' comments: 'It’s not a good thing to mix sport with politics'

Drake Riggs - October 7, 2021

Zhang Weili and Rose Namajunas’ first encounter at UFC 261 in April became a lot more political than anticipated. Ahead of the strawweight title clash, Namajunas gave an interview to Lithuanian media where she expressed her thoughts on her background along with Zhang’s ultimately leading to her “better dead than red” comments.

Sean O'Malley
Sean O'Malley

Sean O'Malley reacts after Jon Jones gets arrested in Las Vegas: "You can't beat on your boo"

Adam D Martin - October 7, 2021

UFC bantamweight Sean O’Malley reacted after Jon Jones got arrested in Las Vegas, saying that “you can’t beat on your boo.” Jones was arrested two weeks ago in Las Vegas, just hours after his 2013 classic with Alexander Gustafsson was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame. Jones was arrested on charges of domestic battery after an incident with his fiancee, Jessie Moses, as well as damaging a police car. Since the arrest happened, the reaction towards Jones has generally been negative, as this is far from the first time that he has gotten in trouble with the law.

Islam-Makhachev
Justin Gaethje

Islam Makhachev trolls Justin Gaethje over recent criticism regarding his UFC ranking

Adam D Martin - October 7, 2021

UFC lightweight contender Islam Makhachev trolled divisional rival Justin Gaethje over his recent criticism regarding his UFC ranking. After defeating Thiago Moises for his eighth straight win inside the Octagon, Makhachev improved to 9-1 overall in the UFC and he was bumped all the way to No. 5 in the rankings. Considering Makhachev was ranked far lower before the Moises fight — who was ranked just No. 14 — it surprised a lot of fans and media when Makhachev was bumped so high up the rankings. Obviously, he is a very talented fighter who some believe could be a future UFC champion. But beating someone ranked low like Moises didn’t necessarily earn Makhachev his spot in the top-five, shooting past vets like Rafael dos Anjos on the way.

UFC

Jared Vanderaa expects to be 'beat up' Alexandr Romanov on the feet and get a gatekeeper next time out

Cole Shelton - October 7, 2021

Jared Vanderaa didn’t expect his next opponent to be Alexandr Romanov. After Vanderaa picked up his first UFC win back in May against Justin Tafa, Vanderaa wasn’t sure who would be next for him. However, when he was offered Romanov he was surprised but he did immediately accept it.

Thiago Santos, Johnny Walker, UFC Vegas 38
Thiago Santos

Johnny Walker was "scared as hell" against Thiago Santos at UFC Vegas 38, says coach

Adam D Martin - October 7, 2021

UFC light heavyweight contender Johnny Walker was “scared as hell” against Thiago Santos at UFC Vegas 38, says his opponent’s coach. In what was expected to be a slugfest between two Brazilian KO artists, the fight was anything but. Both Walker and Santos were content to stand on the outside and essentially spar for five rounds, with Santos earning a unanimous decision victory at the end of the 25 minutes. It was not the fight that the fans expected and many of them took to social media to vent their complaints following the fight. But while many have put the blame on Santos for making it a tactical fight, his coach believes that it is actually Walker’s fault that it was.

Dan Hooker
Islam Makhachev

Dan Hooker can thwart the wrestling of Islam Makhachev at UFC 267, says coach

Adam D Martin - October 7, 2021

UFC lightweight contender Dan Hooker can thwart the wrestling of elite grappler Islam Makhachev at UFC 267, says his coach, Frank Hickman. When Rafael dos Anjos fell off of the UFC 267 card with an injury, Hooker stepped up on short notice to take on Makhachev, who is considered one of the most feared fighters in the UFC lightweight division. Just a week after he beat Nasrat Haqparast at UFC 266, Hooker accepted the fight with Makhachev for the end of October on Fight Island. The oddsmakers are not particularly high on Hooker’s chances in the matchup, as he’s a big underdog.