MMA News

Josh Evanoff - November 22, 2024

UFC featherweight contender Bryce Mitchell has began feuding with Elon Musk. ‘Thug Nasty’ hasn’t been seen in the cage since stepping up to face Josh Emmett last December. That night saw Bryce Mitchell suffer a devastating first-round knockout loss. The defeat was the grappler’s first knockout defeat of his career and made him make a few changes. After a year away from the cage, Mitchell is now set to return.

Josh Evanoff - November 22, 2024

Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has praised Jon Jones. ‘Bones’ returned to the octagon in the main event of UFC 309 over the weekend in New York City. Back for the first time since submitting Ciryl Gane last March, Jon Jones faced Stipe Miocic. For his part, the 42-year-old former heavyweight champion hadn’t been seen in the cage since a knockout loss to Francis Ngannou in 2021.

BJ Penn Staff - November 22, 2024

UFC star Conor McGregor has been found civically liable of rape in Ireland, and his combat sports rival Jake Paul was one of the first to react to the disturbing news. Over the last week, McGregor has been embroiled in a highly publicized civil trial stemming from an 2018 incident at a Dublin hotel, during which he was alleged to have sexually assaulted a woman named Nikita Hand. The “alleged” stipulation is no longer required, as far as Dublin’s High Court is concerned, after jurors sided with Hand on Nov. 22.

Cole Shelton - November 22, 2024

Carlos Ulberg believes he could secure a lightweight title shot with a win over Volkan Oezdemir at UFC Macau. Ulberg is a riding contender at light heavyweight and is ranked 10th. However, he’s set to fight the eighth-ranked contender and a former title contender in Oezdemir in a pivotal light heavyweight bout. It’s the biggest step-up in competition that Ulberg has faced and he knows a win will do him wonders.

Fernando Quiles - November 22, 2024

Conor McGregor has spoken out after a jury in Dublin found him liable in a 2018 sexual assault case. The jury determined that the UFC megastar was guilty of sexually assaulting Nikita Hand in December 2018. Irish Mirror’s Pat Healy revealed that the verdict includes damages around €250,000. Hand filed the civil suit back in 2021 and alleged that she never gave consent to an intoxicated McGregor. Hand alleged that both McGregor and a man named James Lawrence sexually assaulted her. The jury determined that Lawrence did not commit sexual assault.

BJ Penn Staff - November 22, 2024

Daniel Cormier is trying to clear the air with Bo Nickal. The undefeated Nickal, one of the hottest prospects in the UFC middleweight division, was back in action at UFC 309 last weekend, taking on Scotland’s Paul Craig. Nickal won the fight by decision, but the majority of fans seemed to be disappointed by his performance, and Cormier, who was on commentary duty, didn’t seem to be blown away either. In fact, Cormier was critical enough of his fellow wrestler’s performance that Nickal took issue with his comments after the fact.

Fernando Quiles - November 22, 2024

Deieveson Figueiredo has his sights set on UFC gold once again, and he thinks a win over Petr Yan will get him there. Figueiredo is no stranger to holding a title under the UFC banner. He is a former two-time UFC flyweight champion. The Brazilian bruiser is hoping to repeat that success at 135 pounds. So far, Figueiredo is 3-0 since moving on from the flyweight division.

BJPENN.COM Staff - November 22, 2024

After 24 months away from action, two-weight ONE MMA World Champion Christian Lee is looking to make up for lost time when he returns at ONE Fight Night 26.   The Singaporean-American defends his lightweight MMA belt against undefeated Alibeg Rasulov at the top of the bill on Friday, December 6, inside Bangkok, Thailand’s Lumpinee Stadium.  

Cole Shelton - November 21, 2024

Former UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski has shut down talks of him fighting Diego Lopes. Lopes has called out Volkanovski and has expressed interest in fighting him for an interim title or a No. 1 contender. However, Volkanovski says he has no interest as he’s focused on fighting Ilia Topuria for the belt.

Josh Evanoff - November 21, 2024

Ian Machado Garry can’t wait to lock horns with Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 310. ‘The Future’ hasn’t been seen in the octagon since a unanimous decision victory over Michael Page in June. The win was Ian Machado Garry’s biggest of his career thus far and moved him to a stellar 15-0 inside the cage. Following the victory, the Irishman called for a showdown with fellow unbeaten contender, Shavkat Rakhmonov.

Josh Evanoff - November 21, 2024

Former Olympic wrestler Gable Steveson believes MMA is likely in his future. The Minnesota wrestler is in a bit of a strange place in his career. After winning gold at the 2020 Summer Games, Gable Steveson instantly became a star. The 24-year-old quickly signed a deal to join the WWE, bypassing offers from the likes of UFC and Bellator. Sadly for Steveson, professional wrestling wasn’t the right fit.

Josh Evanoff - November 21, 2024

Interim UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall is in discussions for his return. The British fighter is fresh off his trip to New York City for UFC 309. Back for the first time since knocking out Curtis Blaydes in an interim title defense in July, Tom Aspinall served as the backup fighter for Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic. However, his services weren’t needed. ‘Bones’ ultimately scored a third-round knockout win on Saturday.

Cole Shelton - November 13, 2024

Damon Jackson knew he couldn’t make the cut to featherweight next. Jackson is set to move up to lightweight to face Jim Miller at UFC 309. After Jackson said he killed himself in the last two weight cuts, he knew he needed to move up to lightweight.

Cole Shelton - November 13, 2024

In the main event of UFC 309, the heavyweight title is on the line as Jon Jones looks for his first defense against former champ Stipe Miocic. Heading into the bout, Jones is a sizeable -700 favorite while the former champ is a +440 underdog on FanDuel. Ahead of the scrap, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the heavyweight title fight. The pros are unanimous in thinking Jon Jones will remain the heavyweight champion with a victory over Stipe Miocic at UFC 309.

Cole Shelton - November 12, 2024

Eryk Anders is nearing the end of his MMA career. Anders will return to the Octagon on Saturday at Madison Square Garden at UFC 309 against Chris Weidman. It’s a venue Anders has wanted to fight at in his entire career, so he’s thrilled to get the chance to do so.

Cole Shelton - November 7, 2024

Ryan Hall plans on returning in early 2025 and could do so at a new weight class. Hall hasn’t fought since December of 2021 when he beat Darrick Minner by decision. Since then, Hall has had a plethora of injuries, but he’s on the road to recovery and plans to return in early 2025.

Cole Shelton - November 5, 2024

Ryan Hall is looking to make the walk to the Octagon again. Hall hasn’t fought since December of 2021 when he beat Darrick Minner. Since then, the fan-favorite has dealt with plenty of injuries and has had 19 surgeries since his last fight.

Cole Shelton - October 31, 2024

Chad Anheliger will finally get to fight in Canada for the UFC. Anheliger has fought four times in the UFC, but he hasn’t been booked to fight on any of the Canadian cards. But, after his last win, which was also the final fight of his deal, the promotion re-signed him and offered him Cody Gibson at UFC Edmonton.

Cole Shelton - October 24, 2024

In the co-main event of UFC 308, a pivotal middleweight bout goes down as Robert Whittaker takes on Khamzat Chimaev. Heading into the bout, Whittaker is a +200 underdog while the undefeated fighter is a -265 favorite on FanDuel. Ahead of the scrap, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the pivotal middleweight fight.  The pros believe Whittaker will be able to pull off the upset as they think he can drag the fight into the later rounds and get the win.

Cole Shelton - October 23, 2024

Dan Ige is expecting a fun fight against Lerone Murphy at UFC 308. Ige is coming off a decision loss to Diego Lopes back at UFC 303 in a fight he took on only a couple of hours’ notice. It was a hectic day for the Hawaiian and he says he was glad he did it as he proved to everyone just how good he is.

Cole Shelton - October 16, 2024

Mario Bautista knew getting past Jose Aldo would be tough, and he did what he needed to do to win. Bautista edged out a split decision win over Aldo at UFC 307 in what was considered by many to be a lackluster fight. Heading into the bout, the wrestling and clinch weren’t part of Bautista’s game plan until it was there for him to use.

Cole Shelton - October 10, 2024

Josh Fremd wasn’t sure if he was going to get another fight in the UFC. Fremd suffered a lackluster decision loss to Andre Petroski back at UFC Denver in a fight that he thought was super boring. He was frustrated with how the fight played out and after the scrap, he wasn’t sure what would be next. Luckily, the UFC quickly offered him Abdul Razak Alhassan at UFC Vegas 98 and he jumped at the offer.

Cole Shelton - October 8, 2024

Alex Morono is glad to be making a quick turnaround at UFC Vegas 98 as he hopes to get the bad taste out of his mouth. Morono is coming off a dissapointing decision loss to Niko Price at UFC 302 in June. It was a frustrating fight for Morono who said nothing went right for him all fight week.

Cole Shelton - October 2, 2024

Mario Bautista is excited and honored to fight a legend like Jose Aldo at UFC 307. Bautista is coming off a decision win over Ricky Simon back in January. Since then, he had been campaigning for a fight but nine months later, he will return to the Octagon on Saturday. Although it is a much longer wait, he says the opponent is well worth it.