MMA News

Harry Kettle - April 2, 2025

UFC star Ian Machado Garry has reacted to being given a short notice fight against Carlos Prates at UFC Kansas City. We all know that Ian Machado Garry is a very serious, legit contender in the welterweight division. He’s proven that time and time again, most notably in his incredibly close decision loss at the hands of Shavkat Rakhmonov. Now, though, he’s set for an entirely new challenge – and another short notice one.

Harry Kettle - April 2, 2025

UFC lightweight Mateusz Gamrot is rumored to be in the mix for a UFC 314 back-up role, if he is required. There are plenty of interesting contenders littered throughout the top 15 of the lightweight division. One who stands out for us, though, is Mateusz Gamrot. While he’s picked up some big wins in his career and has even been viewed as a title contender, he’s also suffered big setbacks against the likes of Beneil Dariush and Dan Hooker.

Harry Kettle - April 2, 2025

Khalil Rountree Jr has given his thoughts on his upcoming fight with Jamahal Hill at UFC Kansas City being called off. As we know, Rountree Jr is one of the most interesting light heavyweight contenders out there today. In his last outing, he battled Alex Pereira for the championship – and he came pretty close to pulling off an upset win. Alas, in the end, he went out on his shield, proving once and for all what a true warrior he really is.

BJ Penn Staff - April 1, 2025

MMA fans can be a pretty critical bunch, and they sure don’t forget easily. In her latest UFC fight, strawweight star Loopy Godinez narrowly avoided a situation that would have had fans chattering for weeks — and not in a good way. Godinez, who was born in Mexico but now lives in Canada, was back in action as part of this past Saturday’s UFC Mexico City card. This time, she was taking on Julia Polastri in a three-round fight, looking to bounce back from consecutive decision losses to submission specialists — and top contenders — Virna Jandiroba and Mackenzie Dern.

BJPENN.COM Staff - April 1, 2025

Nico Carrillo had some choice words for ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Champion Jonathan Haggerty after their interaction at ONE 170. Carrillo enters the featherweight Muay Thai division this Friday, April 4, at ONE Fight Night 30: Kryklia vs. Knowles, as he meets #4-ranked contender Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong. But he still has time for his long standing rival.

Josh Evanoff - April 1, 2025

UFC 316 will be headlined by Merab Dvalishvili vs. Sean O’Malley 2, Dana White revealed earlier today. Earlier today, the UFC CEO took to social media to announce several new fights. Sadly, the Fight Night slated for Kansas City later this month has a new main event, following an injury to Jamahal Hill. As a result, ‘Sweet Dreams’ is out of his slated fight against Khalil Rountree Jr., and the bout has been replaced by Ian Machado Garry vs. Carlos Prates. However, that welterweight headliner wasn’t the only bout announced earlier today.

Cole Shelton - April 1, 2025

UFC Kansas City has gotten a new main event as Ian Machado Garry has once again stepped up on short notice. The event was supposed to be headlined by a light heavyweight bout between Khalil Rountree and Jamahal Hill. However, the fight is now off, and UFC CEO Dana White announced that Garry will take on Carlos Prates in the main event. The event is set to take place on April 26.

Josh Evanoff - April 1, 2025

Former UFC women’s flyweight contender Jessica Eye has signed with BKFC. ‘Evil’ was one of the first high-profile women to make a splash in the UFC. Jessica Eye joined the company in 2013 and quickly found success with wins over the likes of Sarah Kaufman and Leslie Smith. However, that success was short-lived. Eye eventually found herself in the midst of a four-fight losing streak in 2018, having suffered losses to the likes of Miesha Tate and Julianna Pena. As a result, the striker went down in weight.

Josh Evanoff - April 1, 2025

PFL executive Dan Hardy doesn’t believe Jake Paul will ever step into the cage. ‘The Problem Child’ hasn’t been seen in action since his high-profile meeting with Mike Tyson in the boxing ring last year. That bout saw the 28-year-old dominate the heavyweight legend thirty years his senior, outboxing him en route to a lopsided decision victory. Following the win, Jake Paul called for a longshot bout with Canelo Alvarez. While the Mexican star entered talks with him, he instead signed a deal to fight Terence Crawford under Turki Alalshikh’s Riyadh Season banner.

Josh Evanoff - April 1, 2025

Former two-weight UFC champion Henry Cejudo could retire following his recent injury. ‘Triple C’ is fresh off his return to the octagon in the main event of UFC Seattle in February. Back for the first time since a lopsided loss to Merab Dvalishvili last year, the former UFC champion met Song Yadong. Riding a two-fight losing streak entering the event, Henry Cejudo badly needed a win. Instead, he left the cage last month with a stoppage loss and an injured eye.

Cole Shelton - April 1, 2025

Dillon Danis has sent a bold prediction on his upcoming fight against Tony Ferguson in the GFL. Danis is set to take on Ferguson at lightweight, which is 165 pounds in the GFL in the main event of GFL 2 on May 25. The event will take place at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California. Heading into the fight, Danis is oozing with confidence and shared a scathing prediction for his fight.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - April 1, 2025

Rising UFC star Carlos Prates has shared his prediction for the welterweight title fight between Belal Muhammad and Jack Della Maddalena. Muhammad and Maddalena are set to collide in the main event of UFC 315 on May 10. The championship fight will be held inside the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It’ll be Muhammad’s first attempt at a successful UFC title defense. As for Maddalena, this will be his first UFC championship fight.

Cole Shelton - March 27, 2025

Steve Erceg wants to prove the doubters wrong that he is a top-ranked flyweight at UFC Mexico City. Erceg is coming off back-to-back losses to Kai Kara-France by KO and Alexandre Pantoja by decision. Despite losing two straight fights, he’s set to headline UFC Mexico City against Brandon Moreno on Saturday.

Cole Shelton - March 19, 2025

In the main event of UFC London, former UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards will take on Sean Brady. Heading into the fight, Edwards is a +130 underdog while the American is a -166 favorite on FanDuel. Ahead of the scrap, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro-fighters to get their predictions for the welterweight main event. The pros are torn but the majority believe Brady will silence the crowd and beat the former champ.

Cole Shelton - March 14, 2025

Kurt Holobaugh is eager to fight Alexander Hernandez at UFC Vegas 104 on Saturday. After getting back into the win column last time out, Holobaugh wasn’t sure what would be next for him. But, he was excited when he got the offer to face Hernandez.

Cole Shelton - March 7, 2025

Alex Morono is looking to prove the doubters wrong that he still is a top contender at UFC 313. Morono is coming off a split decision loss to Daniel Rodriguez, which was his second-straight loss. The losses were disappointing, especially given that Morono feels like those are fights that he should have won.

Cole Shelton - February 28, 2025

Austen Lane wasn’t sure if he was going to get another fight in the UFC. Lane picked up his first UFC win as he beat Robelis Despaigne by decision back in October. It was a massive win for him as it was the final fight on his deal, but he admitted he wasn’t sure if the UFC would re-sign him.

Cole Shelton - February 25, 2025

John Castaneda expects to be the aggressor in his UFC Vegas 103 fight against Douglas Silva de Andrade. Castaneda is set to fight for the first time since June, in a much longer layoff than he wanted. However, the bantamweight contender says he used the time to get better in the gym.

Cole Shelton - February 21, 2025

Modestas Bukauskas is set to make his return to the Octagon at UFC Seattle on Saturday. Bukasukas is coming off a submission win over Marcin Prachnio and will now face Raffael Cerqueira. The light heavyweight contender hasn’t fought since July which was frustrating, but he’s eager to get to fight in front of fans in America.

Cole Shelton - February 19, 2025

In the main event of UFC Seattle, former UFC champ-champ Henry Cejudo takes on Song Yadong. Heading into the fight, Cejudo is a +220 underdog while the eighth-ranked bantamweight is a -295 favorite on FanDuel. Ahead of the scrap, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro-fighters to get their predictions for the bantamweight main event. The pros are nearly unanimous in thinking Song Yadong will get his hand raised and beat Henry Cejudo, likely by decision.

Cole Shelton - February 14, 2025

Vince Morales was eager to get a full camp and prove to everyone just how good he is. Morales returned to the UFC in Paris last September against Taylor Lapilus on short notice and he lost a decision. After the fight, Morales and his team realized they needed to start taking fights with a full camp which they will get here against Elijah Smith at UFC Vegas 102.

Cole Shelton - February 13, 2025

Andre Petroski has been saying he wants to prove he’s the best grappler in the UFC and his latest fight is a chance to further prove that. Petroski is set to take on Rodolfo Vieira at UFC Vegas 102 in an intriguing matchup. It’s a fight that Petroski has wanted and asked about, and he’s thrilled the bout is taking place.

Cole Shelton - February 12, 2025

Youssef Zalal is excited to prove he’s a true title contender at UFC Vegas 102. Zalal was brought back into the UFC last year and went 3-0 to show he’s a true contender. He will now get a tough test as he will face Calvin Kattar in the co-main event of UFC Vegas 102 on Saturday night at the Apex.

Cole Shelton - February 8, 2025

Kody Steele wants to become a fan favorite due to his exciting fighting style. Steele is set to make his UFC debut on Saturday at UFC 312 against Rongzhu. The undefeated fighter will be making the trip to Australia and he says he has talked to several fighters about how to adjust to the long flight and handle his weight cut.