MMA News

Chris Taylor - June 20, 2026 at 3:16 PM PDT // 0 Comments

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 at 11:15 AM PDT // 0 Comments

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.

BJPENN.COM Staff - June 19, 2026 at 4:00 PM PDT // 0 Comments

Four years of shared sessions at Phuket Fight Club give the Austrian striker a better view of Allycia Hellen Rodrigues than most people ever get. What she has seen leaves no room for doubt. Stella Hemetsberger — the reigning two-sport ONE Women’s Strawweight World Champion — is backing her close friend and training partner to retain the ONE Women’s Atomweight Muay Thai World Title when Rodrigues defends against “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.

Curtis Calhoun - June 19, 2026 at 2:29 PM PDT // 0 Comments

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.

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.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 19, 2026 at 9:41 AM PDT // 0 Comments

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 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.

Curtis Calhoun - June 18, 2026 at 4:50 PM PDT // 0 Comments

Former two-division UFC champion Jon Jones sent an ominous message to Alex Pereira and Dana White in a since-deleted tweet. Alex Pereira’s bid at making UFC history fell short at the White House on Sunday as he lost to Ciryl Gane in their interim heavyweight title bout. Pereira opted to make the full-time move to heavyweight and vacate the light heavyweight belt earlier this year, before losing to Gane by second-round TKO.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 21, 2026

A retired UFC veteran doesn’t believe Michael Chandler is worthy of his spot in the top MMA promotion. It has been tough sledding as of late for Chandler, who is a former three-time Bellator champion. While “Iron” has long developed a reputation for being an exciting fighter, he has lost four bouts in a row. Chandler hasn’t earned a victory since 2022, and top lightweight Arman Tsarukyan has suggested that he should be cut from the UFC roster.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 21, 2026

Kyoji Horiguchi is experiencing a low point following his loss to Manel Kape, but he still intends to become a UFC champion one day. Horiguchi and Kape shared the Octagon this past Saturday in the UFC Vegas 119 headliner. The two weren’t strangers to one another going into the bout, as they had competed against each other back in 2017. While Horiguchi scored the submission in their first encounter, Kape got revenge in part two with a TKO finish inside the Meta Apex.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 21, 2026

Josh Hokit has gone scorched earth on UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier. Hokit has raised a lot of eyebrows, and his recent performances inside the Octagon only tell part of the story. While “The Incredible Hok” has defeated Curtis Blaydes and Derrick Lewis, it’s his antics that have gotten him attention. After defeating Lewis on the UFC Freedom 250 card, Hokit got on the mic during his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan and called Michelle Obama a man.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - June 21, 2026

Manel Kape envisions a UFC title fight the next time he steps inside the Octagon. The stage was set for a high stakes flyweight tilt in the main event of UFC Vegas 119 this past Saturday. For Kape, not only was it a chance to make a strong case for a 125-pound title fight, but it was an opportunity to get revenge on Kyoji Horiguchi. “Starboy” was submitted by Horiguchi under the Rizin banner back in 2017.

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 light heavyweight co-main event between Ion Cutelaba and Navajo Stirling. Cutelaba (20-12-1 MMA) will be returning to the Octagon for the first time since scoring a first-round submission victory over Oumar Sy this past March (see that here). ‘The Hulk’ has gone 3-1 over his past four fights, with his lone loss in that time coming against Modestas Bukauskas by way of split decision.

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.

Curtis Calhoun - June 19, 2026

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.