UFC News

Chris Taylor - June 8, 2019

Valentina Shevchenko put her flyweight title on line for the very first time against Jessica Eye this evening in Chicago at UFC 238. The women’s flyweight fight served as the co-main event of the evening.

Tom Taylor - June 8, 2019

The co-main event of UFC 238 saw reigning flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko attempt the first defense of her title opposite a significant underdog in Jessica Eye. Shevchenko earned the title in December, when she outpointed former strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk to assume the division’s vacant throne. Prior to this title win, the Kyrgyzstani striker had great success at bantamweight, even battling the champion Amanda Nunes to a close decision loss.

Chris Taylor - June 8, 2019

A key lightweight bout featuring a former interim title holder Tony Ferguson squaring off with Donald Cerrone took place at tonight’s UFC 238 pay-per-view event. Ferguson was returning to action for the first time since October’s UFC 229 event in Las Vegas, where he defeated former lightweight champion Anthony Pettis via TKO.

Tom Taylor - June 8, 2019

The middle bout of the UFC 238 main card — and perhaps the most anticipated feature of the card overall — occurred in the lightweight division, where top contenders Tony Ferguson and Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone met in a contest that had fans salivating from the moment it was announced. Tony Ferguson entered this matchup on an incredible, 11-fight win-streak. “El Cucuy” has long stood out as the top contender in the UFC lightweight division, but thanks to a long series of bad breaks, has yet to receive a shot at the undisputed title. He looked to change that in this fight.

Tom Taylor - June 8, 2019

The UFC 238 main card was kicked off by a dynamite heavyweight tilt between Australian knockout puncher Tai Tuivasa and former World Series of Fighting champion Blagoy Ivanov. This bout marked Tuivasa’s opportunity to rebound from the first setback of his career, a TKO loss to Junior dos Santos, while the former WSOF champ Ivanov looked to build on the momentum of an impressive if slightly controversial defeat of Ben Rothwell.

Adam Martin - June 8, 2019

One of the UFC’s former middleweight champions, Chris Weidman, is moving up a weight class the next time we see him compete. According to Ariel Helwani of ESPN.com, Weidman will move up to 205lbs for his next fight. The former champ announced the move up to the light heavyweight division himself, and said he plans on returning to the Octagon this fall.

Thomas Taylor - June 8, 2019

After a lengthy stint in the UFC, “Super” Sage Northcutt now calls ONE Championship home. Unfortunately for the American and his fans, his first bout in the ONE ring did not go as planned, as he was stopped in less than 30 seconds by the ferocious Cosmo Alexandre. Speaking recently to TSN’s Aaron Bronsteter, UFC President Dana White reacted to Northcutt’s tough ONE debut. The UFC boss’s take? That Northcutt should retire from MMA.

Cole Shelton - June 8, 2019

Two weeks ago, the UFC made a surprising decision to release ranked middleweight Elias Theodorou and ranked heavyweight Justin Willis. Both fighters had success inside the Octagon but were coming off of lackluster losses. This week, UFC President, Dana White explained why the Las Vegas-based promotion decided to release the two fighters.

Cole Shelton - June 7, 2019

UFC Hall of Famer Urijah Faber is set to return to the Octagon at UFC Sacramento to take on Ricky Simon. “The California Kid” last fought back in December of 2016 where he beat Brad Pickett. Although Faber has been talking about returning for quite some time, news of the announcement surprised his fellow Hall of Famer Michael Bisping. The Englishman was surprised given how much success the 40-year-old is having outside of fighting and believes he doesn’t need the money.

Adam Martin - June 7, 2019

Former UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson is generally regarded as one of the greatest pound-for-pound fighters in MMA history, but the criticism directed towards him during his run in the Octagon was that he wasn’t a draw for fans. Now a member of ONE Championship, Johnson was the most dominant flyweight and arguably the most dominant fighter in MMA period between 2012 and 2018. However, for whatever reason, Johnson just never appealed to fans as a box-office draw, with his pay-per-view numbers being lower than some other champions during his time in the UFC.

Tom Taylor - June 7, 2019

Tony Ferguson has had plenty to say about UFC President Dana White over the last few days — and none of it has been good. From the sounds of it, Ferguson’s growing disdain for White stems from the comments the UFC boss made after Ferguson was forced out of a 2018 fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Tom Taylor - June 7, 2019

For a little while, it sounded like WWE star Brock Lesnar might finally return to the UFC’s Octagon for a heavyweight title fight with Daniel Cormier this year. Unfortunately for Lesnar fans, this long-awaited fight ultimately fizzled out, as Lesnar recommitted to his pro wrestling career. Shortly after it became clear that Brock Lesnar would not be returning to the UFC, Wrestling Observer Newsletter’s Dave Meltzer reported that the former heavyweight champ’s negotiations with the UFC were hindered by the promotion’s new pay-per-view model.

Tom Taylor - June 7, 2019

Earlier this month, UFC strawweight champion Jessica Andrade was carjacked at gunpoint in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Speaking to ESPN, the UFC titleholder opened up on this harrowing incident. Apparently, she didn’t even know she was being robbed at first. It was only when she saw the gun that she knew what was happening.

Natasha Hooper - June 7, 2019

“The Motown Phenom” Kevin Lee joined Joe Rogan on his podcast this week to discuss all things MMA. A notable topic of discussion was a potential fight between Lee and UFC legend, George St-Pierre.

Tom Taylor - June 7, 2019

Henry Cejudo put on quite a show at UFC 238 media day on Thursday (see it here). The flyweight champion arrived at the festivities wearing a crown and a cape, and when it came time for his pre-fight face-off with his opponent Marlon Moraes, clambered onto the stage with an armful of props. There was a Mickey Mouse toy, which Cejudo kicked into the crowd. There was a rubber snake, which the champ whipped at the ground. There was a plush rabbit, drawn from a top hat, which met a similar fate to its rodent cousin Mickey.

Tom Taylor - June 7, 2019

Speaking to ESPN recently, UFC President Dana White updated on the fighting future of former two-division champ and MMA mega star Conor McGregor. The UFC boss explained that McGregor’s massive financial success is allowing him to sit back wait for the right moment to return. He also assured that the UFC’s new pay-per-view model — PPVS are now available exclusively through ESPN — has nothing to do with the delay on McGregor’s return.

Thomas Taylor - June 6, 2019

Joe Rogan is very well connected in the combat sports world. The UFC commentator is well acquainted with many movers and shakers of the MMA and boxing worlds, and apparently, somebody he considers “a good source” told him that Anthony Joshua was knocked out in sparring the week of his shocking upset loss to Andy Ruiz Jr. Rogan made this startling claim, which has also been rumored in boxing circles, on the latest episode of the Joe Rogan Experience MMA Show.

Drake Riggs - June 6, 2019

Being the first to do something is always a special and memorable feat no matter the endeavor. There is an uncountable number of things that someone or something could be first at or first to do. As that’s the case when literally racing someone, it can turn everything else into metaphorical versions of it too. After a goal or objective is completed for the very first time, history more often than not will end up repeating itself at some point down the line. It just depends on how much. Perhaps it could even do so multiple times before the other beginnings can unfold in their own right.