MMA News

BJPENN.COM Staff - June 23, 2026 at 1:00 PM PDT // 0 Comments

She chased the title for years through injuries, postponements, and two defeats. She won it in January 2025 with a second-round finish, became her country’s first-ever female MMA World Champion. Now she puts it down — not because she lost, but because something more important arrived. Denice Zamboanga has relinquished the ONE Women’s Atomweight MMA World Championship after welcoming a baby with her husband Fritz “Kid Tornado” Biagtan. In a statement posted to her social media accounts, the Filipino fighter said she reached the decision after much prayer and reflection. She described it as right for the division’s contenders who continue to pursue their goals.

Dylan Bowker - June 23, 2026 at 12:34 PM PDT // 0 Comments

Cory Sandhagen is simply of a higher caliber than Mario Bautista, despite the latter improving since their first fight, according to a PFL San Diego bantamweight fighter. The combatant in question is Justin Wetzell, who will test skills with Sarvarjon Khamidov at PFL San Diego on June 27th. Both Wetzell and Sandhagen are elite bantamweights who have gotten in a bit of work together before their respective fights, per the PFL San Diego combatant, as both will compete for the two domestic giants within the MMA world this Summer. Weighing in on long-time training partner Sandhagen’s looming rematch with Mario Bautista coming up at UFC 329 on July 11th, Wetzell said [via Bowks Talking Bouts],

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 23, 2026 at 11:43 AM PDT // 0 Comments

Ronda Rousey and Jake Paul are being chastised by retired UFC star Matt Brown following their recent comments. Rousey made her comeback fight against Gina Carano to headline the MVP MMA 1 card, which was promoted by Paul. “Rowdy” scored a quick armbar finish, and the show drew 17 million viewers on Netflix. Recently, Paramount touted the same viewership for UFC Freedom 250, but the global numbers have yet to be released.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 23, 2026 at 11:20 AM PDT // 0 Comments

Josh Hokit has decided to poke some fun at Alex Pereira’s gripes post-UFC Freedom 250. Pereira and Hokit competed in separate bouts during UFC’s historic card on the White House lawn. “Poatan” attempted to become a three-division champion when he collided with Ciryl Gane for the interim UFC Heavyweight Championship. Pereira fell short when he suffered a second-round TKO loss.

Harry Kettle - June 23, 2026 at 1:13 AM PDT // 0 Comments

Umar Nurmagomedov is up for a short notice fight against Song Yadong with the David Martinez fight seemingly falling through. At UFC Abu Dhabi next month, Umar Nurmagomedov was initially scheduled to go head to head with David Martinez. However, following rumblings that Martinez is injured and may be forced to withdraw, the attention has now shifted to a potential Umar vs Song Yadong showdown.

Harry Kettle - June 23, 2026 at 1:09 AM PDT // 0 Comments

UFC welterweight champion Islam Makhachev has given his thoughts on Ian Machado Garry’s style as we approach UFC 330. Later this summer, Islam Makhachev will attempt to once again cement himself as one of the best fighters on the planet when he defends his UFC welterweight championship against top contender Ian Machado Garry.

Harry Kettle - June 23, 2026 at 1:04 AM PDT // 0 Comments

UFC lightweight champion Justin Gaethje wants to be compensated for his great success since signing with the promotion. At UFC Freedom 250, Justin Gaethje finally reached the top of the mountain. He became the undisputed UFC lightweight champ for the first time in his career, and he did so with an unbelievably impressive victory over former king Ilia Topuria.

Dylan Bowker - June 22, 2026 at 6:08 PM PDT // 0 Comments

Conor McGregor is weeks away from fighting in the confines of a cage once again and a surging BKFC contender, who has been a long time fan, has covered multiple tendrils attached to the targeted UFC 329 return of the Irish superstar. Nathan Rivera is the referenced bare knuckle boxer here and Rivera clashes with Tray Martin at BKFC Nashville on June 19th in the co-main event. Before Friday’s fight, the ranked featherweight contender touched on multiple topics including a sentiment from a former opponent of BKFC juggernaut Mike Perry’s and Conor McGregor’s in Eddie Alvarez. When discussing the looming UFC return of BKFC figure head Conor McGregor, Alvarez spoke about how if McGregor were to win that Max Holloway rematch coming up, it would be tantamount to one of the biggest upsets in combat sports history because of all the variables with the half decade return timeline, the prior injury, caliber of opponent, etc. When asked for his thoughts on the general return of McGregor on July 11th and that grandiose sentiment from Alvarez, Nathan Rivera said [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],

Curtis Calhoun - June 22, 2026 at 3:44 PM PDT // 0 Comments

Former UFC star Colby Covington didn’t hold back on his former teammate Dustin Poirier’s recent arrest for public intoxication. Former UFC superstar Dustin Poirier was arrested in Georgia on Sunday night on a ‘public drunk’ misdemeanor charge. Poirier was released on bond and now faces up to a year in jail and/or a hefty fine if convicted.

Curtis Calhoun - June 22, 2026 at 3:02 PM PDT // 0 Comments

Tensions are ramping up between Justin Gaethje and Arman Tsarukyan ahead of a potential lightweight title clash. Justin Gaethje pulled off one of the greatest upsets in UFC history when he defeated Ilia Topuria by TKO (corner stoppage) earlier this month at UFC Freedom 250. After two previously failed attempts at winning undisputed gold, Gaethje added an undisputed title to his legendary resume and handed Topuria his first career loss.

Curtis Calhoun - June 22, 2026 at 2:28 PM PDT // 0 Comments

Former two-division UFC champion Alex Pereira is contemplating retirement after his shocking defeat at UFC Freedom 250. Alex Pereira’s pursuit of UFC history fell short at UFC Freedom 250 earlier this month. In his interim heavyweight title bout against Ciryl Gane, Pereira lost by second-round TKO to Gane in his highly anticipated heavyweight debut.

Curtis Calhoun - June 22, 2026 at 1:42 PM PDT // 0 Comments

UFC Hall of Famer Georges St-Pierre believes Conor McGregor needs to shake up his camp for his long-awaited Octagon return. After five years away from the Octagon, former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor will make the walk against Max Holloway at UFC 329 next month. McGregor hasn’t fought since injuring his leg against Dustin Poirier in their UFC 264 trilogy, and many questions remain regarding McGregor’s place in Mixed Martial Arts.

Harry Kettle - June 24, 2026

UFC bantamweight Sean O’Malley has given his thoughts on who he considers to be the greatest of all time in the division. Throughout the course of the illustrious history of mixed martial arts, there have been some genuinely incredible bantamweight fighters to compete in the sport – and in recent years, Sean O’Malley has emerged as one of the biggest fan favorites we have ever seen at 135 pounds.

Harry Kettle - June 24, 2026

UFC star Paddy Pimblett has looked ahead to his upcoming clash with Benoit Saint Denis at UFC 329 next month. At UFC 329, Paddy Pimblett will attempt to prove that he has what it takes to become a genuine title contender once again in the lightweight division. He will go head to head with Benoit Saint Denis, who has put together a great run as of late to put himself on the brink, too.

Dylan Bowker - June 23, 2026

Paddy Pimblett will step back into the UFC’s octagon in July, and a training partner of his has weighed in on Pimblett’s return fight after falling short in capturing UFC interim gold in January. The referenced fighter is Alfie Davis, and the former PFL title challenger will throw down in a rematch with Alexander Shabliy at PFL San Diego on June 27th. Davis has a history of training with Paddy Pimblett, with Davis’ prior Bowks Talking Bouts appearance touching on his work with ‘The Baddy’ ahead of his aforementioned 155 pound title fight at UFC 324 vs. Justin Gaethje whereby Gaethje eventually unified the lightweight belt by beating Ilia Topuria at UFC Freedom 250 earlier this month. When asking for his thoughts on Pimblett versus Benoit Saint-Denis fight coming up at UFC 329, Davis said [via Bowks Talking Bouts],

Curtis Calhoun - June 23, 2026

UFC legend Dustin Poirier plans to get help for what he admits is an issue with alcohol abuse that runs in his family. Dustin Poirier is usually in the Mixed Martial Arts headlines for the right reasons, but this last Sunday was an exception.

Curtis Calhoun - June 23, 2026

UFC heavyweight contender Josh Hokit doubled down on his claim that former first lady Michelle Obama is a biological man. Josh Hokit earned the biggest win of his heavyweight career earlier this month at UFC Freedom 250, but his actions after knocking out Derrick Lewis continue to be the main talking points.

Curtis Calhoun - June 23, 2026

Kamaru Usman’s two-time rival Jorge Masvidal believes the former champ will make it look easy against Dricus du Plessis. One of the most intriguing matchups of the summer will take place at UFC Oklahoma City when former titleholders Dricus du Plessis and Kamaru Usman square off. Usman, the former UFC welterweight champion, will move up to middleweight in a potential No. 1 contender bout against the former middleweight titleholder Du Plessis.

Curtis Calhoun - June 23, 2026

UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski says more needs to be done to prevent back-of-the-head shots after Alex Pereira’s loss. Alex Pereira’s heavyweight debut fell short against Ciryl Gane earlier this month at UFC Freedom 250. Gane defeated Pereira by second-round TKO to win the interim heavyweight title and clinch a rematch against undisputed champ Tom Aspinall.

Cole Shelton - June 23, 2026

Rafael Fiziev is excited for his UFC Baku main event fight against Manuel Torres on Saturday. Fiziev is set to take on Torres in what should be a fan-friendly striking fight for as long as it lasts. Heading into the bout, oddsmakers have it as a pick’em, as both lightweight contenders can end the fight with one punch.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 23, 2026

Ronda Rousey and Jake Paul are being chastised by retired UFC star Matt Brown following their recent comments. Rousey made her comeback fight against Gina Carano to headline the MVP MMA 1 card, which was promoted by Paul. “Rowdy” scored a quick armbar finish, and the show drew 17 million viewers on Netflix. Recently, Paramount touted the same viewership for UFC Freedom 250, but the global numbers have yet to be released.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 23, 2026

Josh Hokit has decided to poke some fun at Alex Pereira’s gripes post-UFC Freedom 250. Pereira and Hokit competed in separate bouts during UFC’s historic card on the White House lawn. “Poatan” attempted to become a three-division champion when he collided with Ciryl Gane for the interim UFC Heavyweight Championship. Pereira fell short when he suffered a second-round TKO loss.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 23, 2026

Ian Machado Garry believes a win over Islam Makhachev would do good for the UFC welterweight division. Garry and Makhachev are set to collide with the 170-pound gold at stake on Aug. 15. The title fight will headline UFC 330 inside the Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia. It’ll be “The Future’s” first UFC title shot and Makhachev’s first attempt at a successful welterweight championship defense.

Harry Kettle - June 23, 2026

Umar Nurmagomedov is up for a short notice fight against Song Yadong with the David Martinez fight seemingly falling through. At UFC Abu Dhabi next month, Umar Nurmagomedov was initially scheduled to go head to head with David Martinez. However, following rumblings that Martinez is injured and may be forced to withdraw, the attention has now shifted to a potential Umar vs Song Yadong showdown.