MMA News

Curtis Calhoun - June 19, 2026 at 1:21 PM PDT // 0 Comments

One of referee Herb Dean’s biggest critics, Dan Hardy, is one of his biggest defenders from Alex Pereira’s criticism after UFC Freedom 250. Former two-division UFC champion Alex Pereira’s bid at history fell short as he lost to Ciryl Gane at UFC Freedom 250. In his highly anticipated heavyweight debut, Pereira lost the opportunity to become the UFC’s first three-division champ as Gane knocked him out in Round 2.

BJPENN.COM Staff - June 19, 2026 at 1:00 PM PDT // 0 Comments

The world called it an upset. He called it the result of everything his mother ever taught him. Samet Agdeve defends the ONE Heavyweight Kickboxing World Title against two-sport, two-division king Roman Kryklia in the co-main event of The Inner Circle 19 on Friday, June 19, streaming live for members from Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. The 22-year-old Turkish titleholder enters the rematch at 18-0 with 12 knockouts.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 19, 2026 at 11:20 AM PDT // 0 Comments

Jake Paul has some words after viewership numbers for UFC Freedom 250 on Paramount+ surfaced. UFC Freedom 250 was a historic event that was capped off by a memorable title unification bout in the lightweight division. Justin Gaethje stopped Ilia Topuria before the start of the fifth round to earn his first undisputed UFC championship. The co-main event saw Ciryl Gane finish Alex Pereira to win the interim UFC heavyweight gold.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 19, 2026 at 10:31 AM PDT // 0 Comments

One fighter on the UFC Vegas 119 card failed to make his contracted weight on Friday, but there is good news. Manel Kape and Kyoji Horiguchi avoided weigh-in mishaps prior to Saturday’s card. That’s music to the ears of fight fans given that the two will be headlining UFC Vegas 119, which will be held at the Meta Apex. In fact, all competitors scheduled for the main card were able to clock in at the weights they agreed upon.

Harry Kettle - June 19, 2026 at 8:58 AM PDT // 0 Comments

Islam Makhachev’s coach Javier Mendez has given his thoughts on Ilia Topuria’s big defeat at UFC Freedom 250 last weekend. Last Sunday, Ilia Topuria fell to his first professional loss in mixed martial arts at the hands of Justin Gaethje. It was a pretty emphatic defeat, and although Ilia certainly had his moments, which included nearly stopping Gaethje in the second round, it was ultimately a poor showing for someone who we have come to expect excellence from.

Harry Kettle - June 19, 2026 at 8:54 AM PDT // 0 Comments

UFC lightweight champion Justin Gaethje has provided an update on his return to the cage after his win at UFC Freedom 250. Last weekend, Justin Gaethje defeated and stopped Ilia Topuria on the stool to become the new undisputed UFC lightweight champion. It was a pretty incredible performance from the man known as ‘The Highlight’, and as you can imagine, the masses are already interested to know who he may take on next.

Harry Kettle - June 19, 2026 at 8:52 AM PDT // 0 Comments

Veteran MMA referee John McCarthy has given his thoughts on the back of the head controversy surrounding Alex Pereira. Last weekend at UFC Freedom 250, Alex Pereira and Ciryl Gane went head to head for the UFC interim heavyweight championship. In the end, it was the Frenchman who managed to get his hand raised, finishing off the Brazilian sensation with a flurry of strikes – featuring a handful that many considered to be illegal.

Dylan Bowker - June 18, 2026 at 6:52 PM PDT // 0 Comments

UFC Freedom 250 was bound to attract widespread attention and it certainly delivered on that side to the scale of nearly twenty million viewers. The White House-based card that took place on June 14th saw Paramount+ record a cumulative amount of 17 million viewers across America and Latin America. Between the United States and Latin America, 15.3 million viewers came from the former market while the latter market brought in 1.7 million viewers. This was the largest viewing audience that Paramount+ has received so far within a UFC media rights deal that kicked off at the beginning of this year. It was also the biggest live exclusive event in the broadcast platform’s overall history. An average of 8.2 million viewers took in the more concise seven-fight offering. The 8.2 million average viewer figure was broken up by 7 million viewers within America and 1.2 million viewers within Latin America.

BJPENN.COM Staff - June 18, 2026 at 4:00 PM PDT // 0 Comments

Both fighters injured themselves. Both had to rebuild. Now, weeks after the most anticipated women’s striking matchup of the year faced a delay, the fight happens. Allycia Hellen Rodrigues defends the ONE Women’s Atomweight Muay Thai World Title against ONE Women’s Atomweight Kickboxing World Champion “The Queen” Phetjeeja Lukjaoporongtom in the main event of The Inner Circle 19 on Friday, June 19, streaming live for members from Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. The bout was originally booked for ONE Fight Night 41 in March before injuries to both fighters forced a postponement.

Curtis Calhoun - June 18, 2026 at 3:20 PM PDT // 0 Comments

Boxing star Ryan Garcia is the latest to taunt Ilia Topuria following the now-former UFC champion’s first career loss. Now-former UFC lightweight champion Ilia Topuria’s first title defense resulted in a stunning upset against Justin Gaethje at UFC Freedom 250. After a dominant run of knockouts inside the Octagon, Topuria got a taste of his own medicine, losing to Gaethje by TKO (corner stoppage) in the UFC Freedom 250 main event.

Curtis Calhoun - June 18, 2026 at 2:32 PM PDT // 0 Comments

Former UFC lightweight champion Ilia Topuria will likely be out for the remainder of 2026 after a brutal loss at the White House. Ilia Topuria left the Octagon a bloody mess as he suffered the first loss of his career to Justin Gaethje at UFC Freedom 250 on Sunday. Topuria, previously unbeaten in his MMA career, lost to Gaethje by TKO (corner stoppage) in what was his first lightweight title defense.

Curtis Calhoun - June 18, 2026 at 2:06 PM PDT // 0 Comments

FC Hall of Famer Michael Bisping criticized Alex Pereira’s recent media tour following his TKO loss to Ciryl Gane. Former two-division UFC champion Alex Pereira suffered just the second stoppage loss of his promotional tenure to Ciryl Gane on Sunday at UFC Freedom 250. In his highly anticipated heavyweight debut, Pereira struggled with Gane’s power and movement en route to a second-round TKO loss.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 21, 2026

Dana White has come to the defense of Alex Pereira in the aftermath of UFC Freedom 250. Pereira was featured in the co-main event of UFC’s historic show on the White House lawn, and he competed for the interim heavyweight gold. “Poatan” stood across from Ciryl Gane, who handed him a second-round TKO loss. After the fight, Pereira took exception to referee Herb Dean’s officiating, as he believes the veteran official failed to acknowledge several illegal strikes to the back of the head.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 21, 2026

Dana White has shed light on why UFC hasn’t closed the deal to use Trevor Wittman’s fighter gloves. Eye pokes in MMA have long been a significant issue. Back in Oct. 2025, the problem reared its ugly head when UFC Heavyweight Champion Tom Aspinall was poked in both eyes by Ciryl Gane in the opening frame of their title fight. The UFC 321 headliner was ruled a no contest and Aspinall underwent multiple surgeries on both eyes.

Chris Taylor - June 20, 2026

Tonight’s UFC Vegas 119 event was headlined by a highly anticipated men’s flyweight rematch featuring Manel Kape taking on Kyoji Horiguchi. Kape (23-7 MMA) and Horiguchi (36-6 MMA) were competing for a second time this evening in Las Vegas. The current flyweight contenders had originally met back on New Years Eve in 2017 under the RIZIN banner, with ‘The Typhoon’ emerging victorious by way of third-round submission (arm-triangle choke).

Chris Taylor - June 20, 2026

We have you covered for all of tonight’s UFC Vegas 119 results, including the main event rematch between Manel Kape and Kyoji Horiguchi. Kape (23-7 MMA) and Horiguchi (36-6 MMA) will be competing for a second time this evening in Las Vegas. The flyweight contenders originally met back on New Years Eve in 2017 under the RIZIN banner, with ‘The Typhoon’ emerging victorious by way of third-round submission (arm-triangle choke).

Chris Taylor - June 20, 2026

We have you covered for all of tonight’s UFC Vegas 119 results, including the men’s featherweight bout between Andre Fili and Vinicius Oliveira. Fili (25-14 MMA) will be competing for the first time since dropping a split decision loss to Jose Miguel Delgado this past March at UFC Vegas 114. Prior to that setback, ‘Touchy’ was coming off a split decision victory over Christian Rodriguez in August of 2025.

Chris Taylor - June 20, 2026

Mixed Martial Arts action returns to the Apex for tonight’s UFC Vegas 119 event, a 12-bout fight card headlined by Manel Kape vs. Kyoji Horiguchi. Kape (22-7 MMA) and Horiguchi (36-5 MMA) will be competing for a second time this evening in Las Vegas. The flyweight contenders originally met back on New Years Eve in 2017 under the RIZIN banner, with ‘The Typhoon’ emerging victorious by way of third-round submission (arm-triangle choke).

Dylan Bowker - June 20, 2026

A UFC comeback is so sought after by an ex-veteran of the promotion that he is willing to drop a major MMA title and leave the sport, outright. The combatant in question is Zhalgas Zhumagulov, who is coming off of his attempt at cementing himself as a two-division champion under the Oktagon MMA banner. Ultimately, the verdict of that clash was a no-contest after an accidental low blow halted the contest between the European powerhouse’s 125-pound and 135-pound titleholders. Zhumagulov came in as the flyweight champ, aiming for fellow ex-UFC vet Igor Severino’s OMMA bantamweight belt, with the bout being waved off around the halfway mark of the second stanza.

Curtis Calhoun - June 19, 2026

UFC Hall of Famer Ronda Rousey feels vindicated in her harsh attacks towards UFC Chief Business Officer Hunter Campbell. Ronda Rousey’s return to Mixed Martial Arts drew the largest U.S. audience in the sport’s history earlier this year. In her first fight in a decade, Rousey tapped out Gina Carano with an armbar in just 17 seconds to cap off a star-studded Most Valuable Promotions MMA card.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 19, 2026

Jake Paul has some words after viewership numbers for UFC Freedom 250 on Paramount+ surfaced. UFC Freedom 250 was a historic event that was capped off by a memorable title unification bout in the lightweight division. Justin Gaethje stopped Ilia Topuria before the start of the fifth round to earn his first undisputed UFC championship. The co-main event saw Ciryl Gane finish Alex Pereira to win the interim UFC heavyweight gold.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 19, 2026

One fighter on the UFC Vegas 119 card failed to make his contracted weight on Friday, but there is good news. Manel Kape and Kyoji Horiguchi avoided weigh-in mishaps prior to Saturday’s card. That’s music to the ears of fight fans given that the two will be headlining UFC Vegas 119, which will be held at the Meta Apex. In fact, all competitors scheduled for the main card were able to clock in at the weights they agreed upon.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 19, 2026

Daniel Cormier is none too pleased over Josh Hokit’s diss aimed at Michelle Obama. UFC Freedom 250 offered a lot for MMA fans to be excited about. All seven fights on the historic White House card delivered knockout finishes. A new lightweight champion was crowned in a thrilling main event, and there is some movement in the heavyweight division after Ciryl Gane captured interim gold.

Harry Kettle - June 19, 2026

Islam Makhachev’s coach Javier Mendez has given his thoughts on Ilia Topuria’s big defeat at UFC Freedom 250 last weekend. Last Sunday, Ilia Topuria fell to his first professional loss in mixed martial arts at the hands of Justin Gaethje. It was a pretty emphatic defeat, and although Ilia certainly had his moments, which included nearly stopping Gaethje in the second round, it was ultimately a poor showing for someone who we have come to expect excellence from.