MMA News

Author: Cole Shelton

  • Adesanya Expects UFC To Learn From Their ‘Atrocious’ Treatment Of Ngannou

    Israel Adesanya believes the UFC will learn from their contract negotiations with Francis Ngannou.

    It was well-known that when the heavyweight champion entered his UFC 270 title defense against Ciryl Gane, it was the last fight of his deal. Since then, he has continued to be vocal about his displeasure with his current contract.

    Ngannou’s friend and UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya, who just re-signed with the UFC, says the promotion needs to deal with the heavyweight champ better, and he is optimistic that they will.

    “I don’t know this narrative of, oh, they just gave me a new deal because of what was happening with Francis,” Adesanya said after UFC 271. “I’m like, no, my dealings with the UFC don’t need to be brought forth because every case is different. With Francis’ case, he needed to bring that forward because it was atrocious, and I respect him for that. But like I said, this is a first step.”

    Israel Adesanya
    © Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

    Israel Adesanya believes the UFC and Francis Ngannou will eventually strike a deal to keep the heavyweight champion in the Las Vegas-based promotion. The hope for Adesanya is his contract and that of other big names will lift the minimum pay for the debuting fighters as well. The middleweight champ wants to see no UFC fighter need to have another job.

    “Dana already said they had dinner with [Ngannou] before he went back to Cameroon; they gonna have dinner when they come back,” Adesanya said. “So yeah, people make mistakes. The UFC’s filled with humans. Humans make mistakes. Human error. But we can always amend those mistakes. Honestly, rising tides lifts all the ships. And with this, I feel like it’s the first step in this trickle-down effect to the rest of the fighters and lifting everyone up.”

    As of right now, there is no talk on when exactly Francis Ngannou and the UFC will meet again but Israel Adesanya is hoping a deal gets made.

    Do you think Francis Ngannou re-signs with the UFC?

  • Archives: Diaz Reacts After Miami Herald’s False Story About Him (2020)

    The following article was published on this day two years ago. It is presented to you in its original, unaltered form, courtesy of The MMA News Archives.

    [ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED FEBRUARY 13, 2020, 11:25 AM]

    Headline: Nate Diaz Reacts After Miami Herald’s False Story About Him

    Nate Diaz confirms he was not in Miami.

    On Wednesday, the Miami Herald published a story saying Diaz was part of an alleged domestic violence and was hospitalized after he attacked the cops at a police station. It made the rounds everywhere, but Diaz’s camp denied it was him.

    Shortly after that, the Miami Herald un-published the story and issued an apology as it was revealed it wasn’t Diaz. Instead, it was Michael Albert Nate, who also happens to be an MMA fighter.

    Following the news of Diaz not being involved in the incident, the fan-favorite took to Instagram to react to the news.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/B8fQhaxgC2-/

    “I’m not even in Miami tho,” Diaz wrote.

    Nate Diaz’s team said they will look to take legal action for defamation of character and has a good shot to win the case. He would no doubt be set to make a ton of money. But, whether he will actually go through with taking legal action is unknown at this time.

    Diaz has not fought since he lost to Jorge Masvidal at UFC 244 where he was fighting for the BMF belt. Before that, he made his return to the Octagon at UFC 241 and defeated Anthony Pettis by decision. It was his first fight in three years after the back-to-back fights with Conor McGregor.

  • Paddy Pimblett Believes Jake Paul’s Fighter Pay Talk Is For Publicity

    Paddy Pimblett doesn’t think Jake Paul is sincere about wanting to change fighter pay.

    Recently, fighters like Anthony Smith have come out and said they believe Paul truly wants fighters to make more. However, Pimblett along with Al Iaquinta doesn’t think that is true, as he thinks the YouTuber-turned-boxer is only doing it for clout.

    “I’ll be honest, that’s the thing that pi**ed me off. He’s going on, he’s trying to act like a martyr, like he’s helping MMA fighters,” Pimblett said on his YouTube channel (via Sportskeeda). “He’s not, lad. He’s just doing that for his won publicity… That’s why the only thing that’s pi**ing me off about it, people are like, ‘Aah, he’s actually being good for MMA fighters.’ He’s not. He just wants to make a show of Dana White and that’s the perfect way of doing it.”

    Jake Paul
    Complex

    Jake Paul has taken shots at Dana White throughout his time in combat sports, which has even gotten a response from the UFC boss. He also said he would retire from boxing if White made the minimum pay $50k, which has not happened. But for Paddy Pimblett, he believes Paul is only doing this for his own benefit.

    Meanwhile, Paul has also said things that seem hard to believe, like him taking an MMA fight. Pimblett says there’s no shot that happens.

    “The way he’s saying, ‘I’m gonna end up getting in the cage.’ You’re not, lad,” Pimblett added. “You’re not, stop lying. If you wanna have an MMA fight, I’ll fight you in my ma’s garden tomorrow. You know what I mean?”

    Whether or not Jake Paul is actually serious is still unknown. The YouTuber along with some MMA fighters says he is while Pimblett, among countless others, doesn’t think he cares at all.

    As for Pimblett, he will return to the Octagon at UFC London on March 19 against Kazula Vargas.

    Do you agree with Paddy Pimblett over his comments about Jake Paul?

  • Luis Peña Says He Has First Fight Booked Since UFC Release, Arrests

    Luis Peña has announced he will fight again.

    Peña competed on The Ultimate Fighter and had mixed results in the UFC as he went 5-3 with notable wins over Steven Peterson and Matt Wiman among others. However, in 2021, he was arrested three times for alleged domestic violence and others and was subsequently released from the UFC.

    Now, Peña took to Instagram to reveal he has a fight booked that will see him compete for the first time since his release. He didn’t reveal what promotion he will be fighting for or who he will be facing.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CZvYInDsVPn/

    “And like that we’re back, almost a year to the day of my last fight, I will make my return to competition and fight outside of America for the first time in my career as well. The opponent has been found, the contract has been signed, and the date is set huge thank you @rogerdkrahl and @alexdavismma for helping make this happen. #fromrussiawithlove,” Peña wrote on Instagram.

    Following his arrests, the UFC released Luis Peña and said they wanted to see him get the help he needs. It’s uncertain what he has done since the release, but he is apparently ready to fight again.

    “At this time, UFC believes Mr. Peña needs to deal with the health and legal issues in front of him, and consequently has informed Mr. Peña’s management that his promotional agreement has been terminated,” the UFC’s statement read.

    Dana White also made it clear he had to release Peña after hearing and reading about what happened.

    “This was a bad case,” UFC president Dana White said. “We knew that he had problems before that we were trying to help him with. And this is a pretty nasty one. I don’t know if you guys read the police report, but yeah. This one had to happen.”

    Luis Peña is currently 9-3 as a pro and coming off a split decision win over Alexander Munoz last April.

    Will you be watching Luis Peña’s return fight?

  • Israel Adesanya Signs New Multi-Fight Deal With UFC

    Israel Adesanya will be staying with the UFC for the foreseeable future.

    It was well known that Adesanya could fight out his UFC contract this year, but on Wednesday, it was revealed the middleweight champion has re-signed with the promotion. His management company, Paradigm, announced via a press release the middleweight champ has signed a new multi-fight deal with the promotion that will make him “one of the top paid athletes in the history of mixed martial arts.”

    This is no doubt good news for everyone involved as since joining the UFC, Adesanya has become a fan-favorite and a massive star. With him re-signing, he will have at least several more fights inside the Octagon.

    Israel Adesanya
    Israel Adesanya (Image Credit: Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC)

    Israel Adesanya is set to defend his middleweight title in the main event of UFC 271 against Robert Whittaker. It’s a highly anticipated fight, but for the champ, he said it will be an easy bag as he expects to dominate Whittaker again.

    “My prediction is that I am going to f*ck Whittaker up, again,” Adesanya said to the Stake. “He can’t stand with me, so I know he will be forced to grapple. Last time he said ‘Kevin Gastelum has given the blueprint on how to beat Adesanya’ and now he’s saying ‘Jan has given the blueprint’… he needs to write his own blueprint. If he wants to copy someone else’s work, then by all means try, because it went so well last time for him when we fought… There has been no cutting corners this time. It’s made me even more motivated to do it again and do it more decisively if that’s even possible. That is my motivation for this fight, to get up and beat him again in an even more devastating fashion.”

    Adesanya is coming off a decision win over Marvin Vettori at UFC 263 in June. The victory got him back into the win column after suffering a decision loss to Jan Blachowicz at UFC 259 for the light heavyweight strap.

    What do you make of Israel Adesanya re-signing with the UFC?

  • Quote: It’s Almost Impossible Not To Like Francis Ngannou

    Francis Ngannou has an incredible story from digging sand in Cameroon to leaving for France and eventually becoming UFC heavyweight champion. And with that, one manager says it’s impossible to not like him.

    According to Ali Abdelaziz, who manages a ton of fighters like Kamaru Usman and Khabib Nurmagomedov, he says Ngannou’s story is incredible. He also considers the heavyweight champion to be one of the nicest people in the sport, so he says it’s impossible not to like him.

    However, even with Ngannou’s freakish power and incredible story, he’s in a contract dispute with Dana White and the UFC. The president didn’t even wrap the belt around his waist at UFC 270. Yet, Abdelaziz believes White doesn’t dislike Ngannou.

    Francis Ngannou
    Francis Ngannou (Image Credit: Frederick J. BROWN/AFP)

    “You look at the story. The guy came form Cameroon, went to Morocco, got on a boat, a plastic boat to Europe, you know,” Abdelaziz said to MMAJunkie. “The man has a strong will. Dana White has been waiting 20 years for someone like Francis… This whole narrative that Dana White don’t like Francis or hates Francis, I think is wrong. It’s almost impossible not to like Francis. The guy, he puts on great shows, he’s a great human being.”

    Francis Ngannou is coming off a decision victory over Ciryl Gane at UFC 270 to defend his heavyweight title for the first time. He impressed many by using his wrestling to win the fight, a path to victory that not many people thought was going to happen.

    With the win, he now has one fight left on his deal or can wait it out until the end of December. At this point, there have been no major progress on Ngannou re-signing with the UFC. Despite the standstill, Abdelaziz believes White doesn’t dislike Ngannou, as many think he does.

    Do you think Francis Ngannou will re-sign with the UFC?

  • Poirier Still Uncertain On Future, Says Fourth McGregor Fight Is Unlikely

    Dustin Poirier isn’t certain what his fighting future holds but doubts it will involve a fourth fight against Conor McGregor.

    Poirier is coming off a submission loss to Charles Oliveira for the lightweight title and hinted at retiring after the fight. He now took to social media to provide fans an update on his career where he says he isn’t sure if he will fight again but says if he does, it probably won’t be a fourth fight against McGregor.

    “I don’t know what’s next,” Poirier wrote while adding “we’ll see” when asked if he will retire.

    If he does fight again, Dustin Poirier has said he wants to fight Nate Diaz, as he admits the fourth McGregor fight is unlikely.

    “Probably not,” Poirier responded to a fan asking if he’ll face McGregor next.

    Although Dustin Poirier says the fourth Conor McGregor is unlikely to happen, it is a fight the Irishman has expressed interest in.

    They had their rematch at UFC 257, which Poirier won by second-round KO. The trilogy match happened in July. The bout ended when McGregor broke his leg, which is why he wants the fourth scrap.

    Dana White also said after the event he’s open to doing the fight for the fourth time.

    “It sucks,” White said after UFC 264. “It’s brutal. It’s not the way you want to see fights end. Dustin Poirier will fight for the title, and when Conor is healed and ready to go, you do the rematch, I guess. I don’t know. The fight didn’t get finished,” he said. “You can’t have a fight finish that way, so we’ll see how this whole thing plays out. Who knows how long Conor is out, so Poirier will do his thing until Conor’s ready.”

    Although Poirier says he’s uncertain if the fourth McGregor fight happens, he is interested in it being in boxing.

    “Book it,” Poirier responded to a now-deleted tweet of a fan asking if he would box McGregor.

    For now, though, Poirier will be spending time with his family and contemplating his fighting future.

    Who do you think we will see Dustin Poirier fight next?

  • Archives: Paige VanZant Shoves Britain Hart’s Throat At Weigh-ins (2021)

    Earlier this week, Paige VanZant caused quite the ruckus over at AEW Dynamite. But on this very same week last year, she was involved in an unscripted scuffle that was very real. VanZant ultimately would lose to Hart in the bout, but at least she got the upper hand, literally and figuratively, in their first physical exchange.

    The following article is presented to you in its original, unaltered form, courtesy of The MMA News Archives.

    On This Day Last Year…

    [ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED FEBRUARY 5, 2021, 9:13 AM]

    Headline: WATCH: Paige VanZant Grabs Britain Hart’s Throat In Heated BKFC Weigh-ins

    Paige VanZant is set to make her Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship debut on Friday against Britain Hart and the weigh-ins got heated.

    After VanZant and Hart weighed in, they got into each others face and VanZant grabbed Hart’s throat. It resulted in a heated shoving match and Hart cussing out the former UFC fighter and saying she is in a different sport now.

    Paige VanZant signed with BKFC in August following her submission loss to Amanda Ribas in her final UFC fight. She signed a multi-fight deal with the sans gloves promotion and many are eager to see how she does in the promotion.

    Britain Hart, meanwhile, has had three fights in BKFC and is 1-2, including a split decision loss to Bec Rawlings for the belt.

    The card also features the 135-pound championship as Johnny Bedford looks to defend his belt against Dat Nguyen. Chris Leben also returns against Quentin Henry.

    The BKFC Knuckle Mania weigh-ins are below:

    Paige VanZant (126) vs. Britain Hart (124.4)
    Johnny Bedford (133.7) vs. Dat Nguyen (134)
    Chris Leben (204.6) vs. Quentin Henry (205.2)
    Lorenzo Hunt (206.8) vs. Rob Morrow (204.4)
    Martin Brown (155.4) vs. Zach Zane (155.5)
    John Chalbeck (144.7) vs. Greg Bono (144.5)
    Charisa Sigala (122.7) vs. Taylor Starling (125.6) VanZant
    Dillon Cleckler (248) vs. Chris Jensen (262.7)
    David Morgan (135.9) vs. Travis Thompson (135.4)
    Haim Gozali (204) vs. John McAllister (201.8)
    Jarod Grant (134.6) vs. Brandon Lambert (137)
    Drew Lipton (183.6) vs. Jeff Bailey (186.9)

  • Arnold Allen Explains Why He Accepted Fight Against Unranked Hooker

    Arnold Allen believes his upcoming fight against Dan Hooker at UFC London is a key point in his career.

    Allen is currently the seventh-ranked featherweight and is 17-1 as a pro, including being 8-0 in the UFC. However, he still doesn’t have the biggest name in the division, so he knows if he can beat a fan-favorite in Hooker, it would be big.

    “I think it will definitely put me in the top-five talks. That’s why I was all for the fight because it definitely puts me up there,” Allen said to The Sun. “If you loom at the guys he’s fought recently at lightweight, the weight above, he’s coming down and I think he was ranked eighth at lightweight. So he’s coming down to fight and a [win] will for sure propel me to those top boys. It’s kind of a funny division, featherweight, at the minute. All those top guys, the top-five or top-six, they’re all kind of tied up with each other anyway.”

    As Allen says, the division is a weird one with Alex Volkanovski and Max Holloway likely to have their trilogy if Volkanovski gets past Korean Zombie. After that, there is no clear next contender as Calvin Kattar and Josh Emmett are both a fight away, but if the Brit can win this one impressively, he could jump the line.

    Arnold Allen, Dan Hooker
    Arnold Allen, Dan Hooker (Image Credits: Jeff Bottari/Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)

    However, even with a potential title eliminator bout being next, Arnold Allen says he isn’t experiencing any added stress.

    “I’m not feeling the pressure. It’s what I train for; this is what I’ve been doing [for],” Allen said.

    “The pressure, if there is pressure, bring it on. It’s what I’m here for.”

    UFC London goes down on March 19 and sees Alexander Volkov vs. Tom Aspinall as the main event.

    Who do you think will win, Arnold Allen or Dan Hooker?

  • Adesanya Admitted To Hooker He’s Nervous Ahead Of Whittaker Rematch

    Israel Adesanya is apparently feeling the nerves ahead of his middleweight title fight against Robert Whittaker at UFC 271.

    Adesanya and Whittaker first fought back at UFC 243 where “The Last Stylebender” won by second-round TKO to claim the middleweight title. He has since defended the belt three times. But this time around, Dan Hooker, a teammate of Adesanya, says the champ is a bit nervous. (h/t Sportskeeda)

    “He’s good. He’s definitely in a good place,” Hooker said to LowKick MMA about Adesanya. “From the interactions that I’ve had with him… I guess with the rematch, especially the way that the first fight went, you can kind of – not necessarily underestimate your opponent – but you can take it a little bit lightly because you know you put on such a dominant performance right there. It might be hard to get up for the training but it’s not like that. Like he said to me this morning, he said, ‘You know I’m nervous.’

    That’s good, you know. He’s got that nervous energy, which you need.”

    Robert Whittaker (left) and Israel Adesanya go toe to toe during UFC 243 at Marvel Stadium. Photograph: Michael Dodge/EPA

    Although Adesanya said he is a bit nervous, as Hooker says, it is a good thing. Most fighters get nervous before they walk out as it is a fistfight and anything can happen. But as “The Hangman” says, Adesanya uses his nervous energy in a good way.

    Israel Adesanya is coming off a decision win over Marvin Vettori back at UFC 263 to defend his belt for the third time. It also marked his return to the win column after losing to Jan Blachowicz for the light heavyweight belt at UFC 259, which was his first pro-MMA loss.

    As for Hooker, he’s set to drop back down to featherweight to take on Arnold Allen at UFC London on March 19.

    What do you make of Israel Adesanya telling Dan Hooker he’s nervous ahead of Robert Whittaker rematch?

  • Lyoto Machida Plans To Test Free Agency After Final Bellator Fight

    Former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida says he still has the desire to fight again.

    Machida is set to fight out his Bellator contract in his next fight, and he revealed he plans to test free agency after that.

    “[Bellator] came to us and said, ‘Let’s renew [the contract] one more time if Lyoto wants to,’ and whatever, and we said no, let’s fight this one first and then we’ll see,” Machida said to MMAFighting. “Every fight is a different fight for me. I saw it that way in the past, and even more now.”

    Although Lyoto Machida says he wants to fight again, he isn’t sure where it will be. He says he wants to be challenged and doesn’t want any easy fights to end his career.

    Lyoto Machida
    Fernando Quiles Jr., MMA News

    Not only does he want to be challenged, but the former UFC champion says he wants to be the one to retire from MMA, not being forced out as many veterans are. He still believes he is competing at a high level at 43-years-old but is on a three-fight losing streak.

    “I don’t want to end it like most people end their careers,” said Machida. “I want to get to a point and say, ‘Well, I think I’m good.’ I don’t want other people telling me, ‘Lyoto, I you can’t do it anymore,’ or whatever. The way I feel and train, I’m the one that decides. We must have the opportunity to fight, of course. I might know how to wire walk, but there’s no point if I don’t have the wire. I want to continue fighting. I don’t know if [I’ll do] three or four more fights.

    “When I was younger, 10 years ago, I was taught to fight every fight as if it was my last; ‘Lyoto, a samurai enters a fight as if it’s last fight.’ You must give your all in training and in the fight, mentally speaking. And now, more than ever, I can’t come here imagining I’ll have three, four, five fights. Every fight is like my last fight. Not in a sense of ending my career, but in the sense of giving my all. And that’s when I’ll make my decision. The fire is still burning inside me and that’s what matters the most. I want to innovate. I want to create a different game. I want to do different things that give me a different experience. And [I want to] fight.”

    When and who Machida fights next is uncertain, but it may be his final fight in Bellator.

    Who would you like to see Lyoto Machida face next?

  • Shields Clarifies Leaked Email About Appearing On Paul’s Undercard

    Claressa Shields has opened up on her recent comments about never wanting to appear on a Jake Paul undercard.

    Shields and Paul have taken shots at one another ever since “The Problem Child” entered boxing. She also criticized any boxer for appearing on his undercard. But recently, it was revealed through a report in USA Today Sports that Shields’ representatives reached out to see if she can be on the same card as Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr., and Jake Paul vs. Nate Robinson.

    “First of all, this isn’t about Jake Paul, this is about Claressa Shields and Ema Kozin,” she explained at a press conference to promote her fight (via Mirror). “As it was said, I don’t email about this stuff – I have a manager and I have a promoter, their job is to make opportunities for me. What you need to know is I was supposed to be on a Mike Tyson and Roy Jones undercard, not ever under Jake Paul – let’s get that clear. I don’t know what the emails said, and I really don’t care, but we’re not going to talk about that and give him the shine of this press conference.”

    Jake Paul, Claressa Shields
    Jake Paul, Claressa Shields (Image Credits: Mike Ehrmann/Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

    Shields does make a good point that Tyson-Jones Jr. was the main event so she wouldn’t have been on a Jake Paul undercard as Paul’s management claimed, even though Paul was on the card. Shields even threatened to sue Paul’s management for suggesting she requested to be on a Jake Paul card.

    Claressa Shields later added that she was done talking about the subject and is only focusing on her title fight and remaining undefeated in boxing.

    “This is about me, this is about Ema, this is about world titles, this is about elite boxers,” Shields later added. “I’m just going to leave that there. Dmitry [her promoter, who was on the call] doesn’t even need to speak on it, managers do their job, promoters do their job and fighters train to get ready for our fights.”

    What do you make of these new comments from Claressa Shields?

  • White Explains Why He Thinks Mayweather Hasn’t Paid Logan Paul

    Dana White has a reason as to why Logan Paul allegedly hasn’t been paid by Floyd Mayweather for their exhibition out.

    Paul recently came out and claimed he is still waiting to be paid by Mayweather for their June exhibition boxing bout. It was a very high-profile match that did very well on pay-per-view, but the YouTuber claims he hasn’t been paid. For White, he has a theory as to why Mayweather is keeping the money.

    “Well, here’s what happens when you go in and do these fights,” White explained on the Full Send podcast (via Mirror):

    “You do these fights that are exhibitions or whatever, the commission isn’t overseeing it. Let’s say I did a fight with Mike [Tyson], I’ve got Mike fighting Francis or something, the athletic commission gets the money upfront, so they pay the fighters, they don’t have to wait.

    Floyd Mayweather Logan Paul
    Floyd Mayweather & Logan Paul (Photo: The Independent)

    “That was the big problem in the past is that these boxing promoters would come in and they wouldn’t make as much money as they thought they were going to do,” White continued. “So they would stiff the fighters and not pay the guys and that’s why these regulations are in place in these different states. And that’s why, I don’t want to s*** on any of the other states, but you want to fight in like Nevada or California, the guys that have a strong athletic commission.”

    Whether or not what Dana White is saying is true or not is uncertain. However, he does know a lot from running the UFC so it could be the case.

    In their June fight, Logan Paul did better than expected and went all eight rounds with Floyd Mayweather. However, due to it being an exhibition no winner was announced.

    What do you make of Dana White’s reason as to why Floyd Mayweather hasn’t paid Logan Paul?

  • Shields Says She Wants Cejudo To Teach Her Wrestling, Cejudo Responds

    Claressa Shields is hoping former UFC flyweight and bantamweight champion Henry Cejudo can teach her wrestling as she continues to fight in MMA.

    Shields is considered arguably the best pound-for-pound women’s boxer in the world, as she’s 11-0 and is the only boxer in history, female or male, to hold all four major world titles in boxing—WBA, WBC, IBF, and WBO simultaneously, in two weight classes. She has had multiple titles in three different weight classes and is undisputed in two.

    However, she has been critical about boxing’s pay and how much interest they show in women, so she signed with the PFL to also fight in MMA. However, after winning her debut, she lost her second fight after being outgrappled and is now looking to turn to Cejudo to help her.

    “I want Henry Cejudo to show me how to wrestle,” Shields said.

    Henry Cejudo Responds To Shields’ Request

    Henry Cejudo saw the comments from Shields and seemed interested in taking her up on her offer, which the boxer is happy about.

    “Goats recognize goat. Maaahhhhh,” Cejudo wrote, with Shields responding with “Let’s go! I’m ready to learn!”

    It shouldn’t be a surprise to see Henry Cejudo offer to train Claressa Shields as since retiring from MMA, he has taken up a coaching role at Fight Ready. Cejudo has recruited the likes of Deiveson Figueiredo, Weili Zhang, and Jiří Procházka to Fight Ready and has been coaching all three of them, including being in Figueiredo’s corner at UFC 270.

    Cejudo is an Olympic gold medalist in wrestling and was a great wrestler in MMA, which led him to win titles in two different weight classes. His expertise would no doubt help Shields, who was taken down multiple times in both her fights. And in the second fight, wrestling was the reason she lost.

    However, if she can learn enough to just keep the fights standing, she will be dangerous, as she has power in her hands and is a phenomenal boxer overall.

    Do you think Claressa Shields and Henry Cejudo will train with one another?

  • Paul Explains Dana White Diss Track: ‘This Is About Doing What’s Right’

    Jake Paul has opened up on his diss track against Dana White and why he did it.

    Paul and White have had an ongoing feud ever since Paul fought and knocked out Ben Askren back in April of 2021. Since then, he beat Tyron Woodley twice, including KO’ing him once, and he has taken shots at White over fighter pay.

    With nothing changing involving pay, Paul released a video on his YouTube channel where he released a diss track on White. Not only did he release a diss track, but Cris Cyborg and Antonio McKee, who were vocal about their displeasure about White and the UFC, were featured in it. For the brash YouTuber, he says he needs to speak up about the disrespect the UFC boss is showing his fighters.

    “Imagine if Adam Silver sent a lawsuit to Lebron James minutes before he took the floor for the NBA Finals, then, refused to present him with the NBA championship trophy after he won,” Paul said to MMAFighting when reacting to White not putting the title on Ngannou. “It’s pure disrespect to the athlete and the sport.”

    Jake Paul
    Jake Paul (Image Credit: Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)

    Jake Paul also added this is about fighters getting paid what they deserve and he says it is clear White has them in terrible contracts and most of them can’t speak up about their pay.

    “This isn’t about boxing or MMA,” Paul explained. “This is about doing what is right. UFC can and should do better given the control it has exerted over MMA fighters. Either treat them as independent contractors, like Uber does its drivers, or give them the compensation and benefits they deserve as employees. So my fund has invested in his company’s stock and I will be working to expose his constant exploitative practices, starting by putting out this song with all proceeds going directly to fighter causes.”

    There is no question Paul has made more people known about fighter pay. However, only time will tell if it will result in any actual change.

    If you missed the release of Jake Paul’s Dana White diss track, you can view it below.

  • WATCH: Former UFC Fighter Markus Perez Nearly Brawls In ‘Pillow Fight’

    Markus Perez has taken a unique route since his UFC release.

    The Brazilian was released from the UFC following a decision loss to Dalcha Lungiambula, which was his third in a row. Perez told the UFC to release him because he didn’t think he was ready for that level and wanted to get work on the regional scene as he was 2-5 in the UFC.

    “I even think the UFC should fire me. I don’t think it’s right for a guy with two wins and five losses to stay hired, taking the opportunity from someone who’s fighting well. I don’t deserve to be in the UFC right now,” Perez said to AG Fight. “I don’t deserve it. They should let me go. I need to leave, solve my problems, win some fights so I can come back. That’s how I’ll be able to say I’m starting my life here (in the UFC). They haven’t talked to me, but I’m sure (I’ll be fired). I didn’t show them who I am.”

    However, after getting his release, he lost his next fight to Zac Pagua at Cage Warriors. Yet, Perez got back into the win column back in December with a submission win. Next, instead of fighting in MMA again, he competed in pillow fights over the weekend and nearly fought his opponent.

    After hitting each other with the pillow, Markus Perez’s opponent lost his pillow but Perez continued to hit him and even smiled at his opponent tauntingly. Shortly thereafter, his opponent would go at him and the two nearly threw down before being separated. However, as more people jumped into the ring, they continued to trash talk, even after being separated.

    Whether or not Perez will do another pillow fight is uncertain, but it appears he is open to anything after his release.

    What do you make of Markus Perez nearly fighting his opponent?

  • Ferguson Says He Has ‘A Move Reserved’ For Khabib When They Batte

    Tony Ferguson still has his eyes set on Khabib Nurmagomedov.

    Nurmagomedov and Ferguson were booked to fight one another five times but for a variety of reasons, the fight never happened. Ever since then, Ferguson has called out “The Eagle” and said he isn’t undefeated because he “lost” to him due to him pulling out multiple times.

    Now, Ferguson has taken to social media to say he has something ready for Nurmagomedov when they go to battle.

    https://www.instagram.com/tv/CZN8kdwJQzc/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

    “Got A Five Point Move Reserved For This Asshole When WeBattle,.. Ippon # TeamTiramisu4L -Champ,” Ferguson wrote on social media.

    Ferguson is currently on a three-fight losing streak and during this losing skid, Nurmagomedov blasted “El Cucuy” saying he needs to retire.

    “He is 38 years old,” Nurmagomedov said in an interview posted and translated by RT Sport. “Tell me how he can make a comeback? He was dominated in his last three bouts. Different styles – a striker, a grappler… Dariush, Oliveira, Gaethje, they all dominated him both standing up and on the ground. When you are 38, I believe, you have to pull the brakes and there have to be people around him to say: ‘Hey, you are aging, you have to stop.’”

    Tony Ferguson is coming off back-to-back lopsided decision losses to Beneil Dariush and Charles Oliveira. Prior to those losses, he suffered a TKO loss to Justin Gaethje at UFC 249 for the interim lightweight title.

    Before the setbacks, Ferguson was riding a 12-fight winning streak and was also the former interim lightweight champion. He’s currently in talks to face Michael Chandler next time out in an all-action scrap.

    Khabib Nurmagomedov, meanwhile, retired at 29-0 after his submission win over Justin Gaethje in 2020.

    What do you make of Tony Ferguson’s latest shot at Khabib Nurmagomedov?

  • Askren Believes Covington Fight Is Crucial For Masvidal’s Popularity

    Ben Askren doesn’t agree with Chael Sonnen that UFC 272 is a career-ending fight per se, but he knows Jorge Masvidal needs to defeat Colby Covington to regain his popularity.

    Masvidal became a massive star in 2019 after knocking out Darren Till in London. He followed that up with a five-second flying knee KO over Ben Askren and then TKO’d Nate Diaz to become the BMF champ. Since then, however, he has suffered two-straight losses to Kamaru Usman for the belt and will now headline UFC 272 opposite Covington.

    It’s a crucial fight, as the two are bitter rivals and Sonnen has said if “Gamebred” loses, it would be career-ending. Yet, for Askren, he doesn’t think it would end his career if he loses, but it would derail his hype and popularity a ton.

    “Well Chael understands the fight business better than almost anyone so generally when he says things, there’s a lot of validity to it,” Askren said to MMA Island about Masvidal. “And so I would not say it’s a career-ender, but unfortunately, people will take offense to this, but I made him a huge star, right? It was at my expense. I don’t want to say he was a nobody before that, but he was kind of like a moderately popular fighter who kind of had maybe a hardcore following but wasn’t known to a broader audience and then the event with me happened, unfortunately, and he became let’s say, one of the top-five stars in the sport and then obviously he parlayed that with the Nate Diaz fight. 

    Jorge Masvidal, Colby Covington
    USA Today and Sports Illustrated

    “Nate Diaz is not the toughest opponent at welterweight but then once he got past that fight, the Usman fights were pretty non-competitive and he hasn’t really fought anyone else in the upper-echelon of that division,” Askren continued about Masvidal. “So Colby is another guy, the upper echelon of the division, and if he loses to him, I think it probably knocks his popularity a couple of levels and he’s got to go low. Now can he regain the popularity on some level? Possibly.”

    As both Askren and Sonnen say, UFC 272 will be a massive fight for Jorge Masvidal’s star power.

    Do you think UFC 272 is a career-ending fight for Jorge Masvidal if he loses?

  • Said Nurmagomedov Claims O’Malley Hasn’t Responded To Fight Offers

    Said Nurmagomedov is looking to fight Sean O’Malley next.

    Nurmagomedov picked up the biggest win of his UFC career on Saturday night at UFC 270 as he submitted Cody Stamann in less than a minute. The win put him to 4-1 in the UFC and is now on a two-fight winning streak.

    After the win, Nurmagomedov said he wanted to return in April and had targeted O’Malley or Marlon Vera.

    “I want to fight before Ramadan,” Nurmagomedov said after UFC 270. “I’m ready to be back soon. I also heard that the (UFC) is going to be in Brooklyn on April 9, and I want to fight there… Any top opponent. I’ve talked about ‘Chito’ Vera before, but any top opponent.”

    Although he mentioned Vera, Nurmagomedov now took to social media to call out O’Malley and says he has been offered the fan-favorite twice.

    “Hey @SugaSeanMMA UFC offer you to me 2 times, your chicken ass never responded run. What we’re gonna do now? I wanna kill your hype,” Nurmagomedov wrote on social media.

    Although Nurmagomedov claims he has been offered to fight O’Malley, “Suga” has not responded so it’s uncertain if that is true. It also seems unlikely that O’Malley would take a step down to fight someone lesser-known after being ranked and calling out big names like Dominick Cruz, Cody Garbrandt, and Rob Font among others.

    If he doesn’t get the fight, Said Nurmagomedov hopes he can fight before Ramadan and face a big-name opponent. He could very well face a ranked opponent, as he likely deserves the chance to enter the top-15 after his last performance, but it probably won’t be against O’Malley. “Suga” also has a hand injury and has said he wants to fight in the summer in Las Vegas.

    Do you think the UFC will book Said Nurmagomedov vs. Sean O’Malley?

  • Sonnen On Moreno: ‘There Is Nothing Good About His Fighting Style’

    Chael Sonnen isn’t a fan of Brandon Moreno’s fighting style.

    At UC 270, Moreno suffered a decision loss to Deiveson Figueiredo in their trilogy match to lose his flyweight title. For Sonnen, he wasn’t surprised Moreno lost, as he says his style is completely wrong.

    “He’s been a complete dud. There is nothing even good about his fighting style except for his offense. Oh boy, is his offense on point,” Sonnen said on his YouTube channel (via PunditArena). “His stance is wrong, his motion is wrong. Do not be an aspiring fighter and go watch Moreno and then go do it.”

    Sonnen believes the way Moreno holds his hands was the reason he lost the fight as it allowed Figueiredo to connect on shots that dropped him. Had the Mexican not been dropped, says Sonnen, he would’ve won the fight.

    The former UFC title challenger questions Brandon Moreno’s defense and says it is a big issue the Mexican needs to change.

    Brandon Moreno

    “The son (of a) b***h fights with his hands right here [below his face]. It’s like he’s peaking out from under a blanket just making sure you have all the good stuff to hit. Why not just put your hands down,” Sonnen said of Moreno. “If your hands are not in front of your face, why not just put them down? It’s infuriating to watch but his offense is good, I got to give him that. He’s quick, he’s tough as an old leather boot. There’s a lot of compliments I could give him. But world champion? Come on, man. No.”

    With the loss, Moreno drops to 19-6-2 as a pro and never successfully defended his flyweight title. It’s uncertain if he will get an immediate rematch, which would be the fourth fight between him and Figueiredo. If that fight is made once again, Sonnen hopes the Mexican makes a serious change to his style to keep his hands up to avoid Figueiredo’s power shots.

    What do you make of Chael Sonnen’s criticism of Brandon Moreno?

  • Vitor Belfort Wants To Fight Tommy Fury After Triller Triad Bout

    Vitor Belfort has his eyes on Tommy Fury next time out.

    Belfort is set to return at Triller Triad Combat 2 on February 26 against Chad Dawson. The former UFC champion is coming off the TKO win over Evander Holyfield in an exhibition bout in Triller Fight Club Legends 2 back in September.

    Now, even before he returns against Dawson, Belfort has his eyes on Fury and wants that fight next. He believes it makes sense as he doesn’t think the Brit should be focused on fighting Jake Paul. Instead, Belfort says Fury should want to face a real fighter.

    “I will fight him anytime,” Belfort told theScore. “Tommy Fury, it’s a shame you were going to fight Jake Paul. Fighting a YouTuber is a shame. (Paul) is a piece of shit. Not as a person —as a fighter. Tommy Fury, I’m up to the challenge,” he continued. “Let’s make this duel.”

    Vitor Belfort

    Fury, of course, was scheduled to fight Paul in the main event of a Showtime boxing pay-per-view card in December. However, the undefeated boxer was forced out of the bout with broken ribs and an infection.

    Since he pulled out, Tommy Fury campaigned to get the fight rebooked, but Belfort clearly hopes that doesn’t happen. Although Belfort is a former UFC champion, Fury would get more eyes on him if he were to box Paul and defeat him. It would also be a bigger payday for the Brit.

    At this time, it does seem unlikely Fury would box Belfort, as the Brazilian has his own fight on February 26. Should he win, then perhaps it might make sense, but Fury has yet to respond.

    What do you make of Vitor Belfort calling out Tommy Fury and who do you think would win a fight between the two?

  • Demopoulos Explains How Pole-Dancing Experience Helps MMA Career

    Vanessa Demopoulos quit her job as a stripper just weeks before her second UFC appearance, but that previous career is proving beneficial to her as a mixed martial artist.

    Demopoulos was set to return at UFC 270 against Silvana Juarez Gomez and the strawweight contender made a big change to her life in the lead-up to the fight. The 33-year-old stopped her 13-year pole dancing career to focus on her training camp and her MMA career, she revealed.

    “I don’t think it’s a secret, I was an exotic entertainer for 13 years,” Demopoulos said after UFC 270 (via The Sun). “And I didn’t actually say it on the mic, but I’d like to say it right now—I walked away from being a stripper to continue this camp. I quit dancing about six to eight weeks ago just so I could focus full-time on MMA, take this extremely seriously in the gym every single day. But yeah, that’s where that background comes from and that’s where the splits come from. And a lot of my jiu-jitsu, actually, comes from my expertise as a pole dancer.”

    The move ended up paying off as Demopoulos scored a first-round submission win over Gomez to pick up her first UFC victory. She made her UFC debut against JJ Aldrich losing by decision. She’s currently 7-4 as a pro and is the former LFA strawweight champion. She defeated current UFC fighter Sam Hughes to win the vacant belt.

    Vanessa Demopoulos went on to explain how her background in pole dancing has helped her with her agility and flexibility which helps her jiu-jitsu.

    “Pole dancing takes a lot of agility, a lot of body awareness, a lot of dexterity and flexibility, and you have to be quick with your reactions,” Demopoulos said. “It’s similar to what jiu-jitsu feels like, but in jiu-jitsu, you have options of tapping if you have to, or you’re safe if you are on the ground. With pole dancing, it’s very death-defying in the sense that you’re literally hanging on with, like, a limb, and one wrong move, you’re done. Like, I’m falling from two stories and that’s it. You only fall once.”

    What did you make of Vanessa Demopoulous’ performance at UFC 270?

  • Gunnar Nelson Returns At UFC London Against Cláudio Silva

    Gunnar Nelson is back.

    Nelson, who has not fought since September of 2019, is set to return at UFC London on March 19 against Cláudio Silva. The news was first reported by MMA journalist Alfredo Zullino. Several outlets have since confirmed the news. The main event of the UFC London card at the 02 Arena sees Tom Aspinall take on Alexander Volkov.

    Gunnar Nelson (17-5-1) last fought at UFC Copenhagen in 2019 where he suffered a decision loss to Gilbert Burns. It was his second loss in a row after dropping a split decision to Leon Edwards at UFC London in Mach of 2019. The Icelandic fighter just recently signed a new multi-fight deal with the promotion and hinted at a fight being announced soon.

    Nelson has been in the UFC since 2012 and is 8-5 inside the Octagon. He holds notable wins over Alex Oliveira, Zak Cummings, Omari Akhmedov, and Alan Jouban among others. He has headlined a UFC event as well but lost by first-round KO to Santiago Ponzinibbio.

    UFC London: Catch up with Claudio Silva before fight vs. Danny Roberts
    Cláudio Silva

    Cláudio Silva (14-3) is also riding a two-fight losing streak as he is coming off a loss to Court McGee by decision in May of 2021. His other loss came at the hands of James Krause in October of 2020.

    Prior to the setbacks, Silva was on a 14-fight winning streak and was 5-0 in the UFC, including wins over Leon Edwards, Nordine Taleb, and Danny Roberts among others.

    With the addition of Nelson vs. Silva at UFC London, the card is as follows:

    • Alexander Volkov vs. Tom Aspinall
    • Arnold Allen vs. Dan Hooker
    • Gunnar Nelson vs. Cláudio Silva
    • Jake Hadley vs. Allan Nascimento
    • Luana Carolina vs. Molly McCann
    • Cody Durden vs. Muhammad Mokaev
    • Makwan Amirkhani vs. Mike Grundy
    • Jack Shore vs. Timur Valiev
    • Shamil Abdurakhimov vs. Sergei Pavlovich

    Who do you think will win, Gunnar Nelson or Cláudio Silva?

  • Dana White: You’re Not Canceling Joe Rogan

    Dana White believes Joe Rogan can not be canceled.

    Recently, a coalition of over 200 medical professionals and educators have written an open letter to Spotify to implement a “misinformation policy” as they claim Rogan is spewing lies on his podcast.

    “This is not only a scientific or medical concern; it is a sociological issue of devastating proportions and Spotify is responsible for allowing this activity to thrive on its platform,” the letter concludes.

    Now, UFC president, Dana White spoke to the Nelk Boys on their Full Send podcast and he says most of these people weren’t actually real doctors.

    “Well, I know they had come out and said it was 200, 250 doctors or whatever. I guess when they started researching these people, they weren’t really doctors,” White said.

    Dana White
    MMA Weekly

    With most of them not being doctors, Dana White proves that Joe Rogan should keep doing what he is doing. He also believes the UFC commentator will never be canceled.

    “You’re not canceling Rogan. And the thing is with Rogan, he’s a brilliant guy, he does his homework, and he knows what he’s talking about,” White said. “And guess what? This is fuckin’ America, and you can have your own opinion about these things, and you can voice ’em. That’s what this fuckin’ country was built on. And all these little whiny fuckin’ pussies that don’t like it, too fuckin’ bad, man. Too bad.”

    Joe Rogan has been vocal about COVID-19 on his podcast, but he has had some experts on his podcast to talk about it. However, given how many people listen to him, the coalition wanted Spotify to have a misinformation notice on his podcasts. Whether or not that will happen is uncertain.

    What do you make of Dana White saying Joe Rogan can’t be canceled after the coalition came out against him?

  • Woodley Explains Why He Posted Jake Paul KO Meme Challenge

    Tyron Woodley has opened up on his decision to post the meme challenge following his KO loss to Jake Paul.

    Back in December in their rematch, Woodley suffered a vicious KO loss to Paul in the sixth round. The former UFC champion was out cold and after the loss, he took to Instagram to offer a $5,000 payout to whichever fan could create the funniest meme of his knockout.

    Woodley then posted the winner and seemed to enjoy the process. Now, he has explained why he decided to do it.

    Tyron Woodley
    Paul/Woodley 2 Post-Fight Presser

    “It was one of the worst mistakes I ever made in a fight. But at the same token, had I not dropped that hand, had I continued to fight the way it was going, we’da been looking at something different,” Woodley said on The MMA Hour. “So I gotta just take the bitter with the sweet and just keep moving.

    “That’s why I did that challenge, you know what I mean? I’m not finna let the motherfuckin’ internet or nobody else make me crawl up in a shell and not come outside, not post, or not say nothing for three, four, five, six months. I can’t afford to do that. I got too much shit that was coming out before this fight even happened to even let a pause. So that’s why I did the challenge.”

    Although Tyron Woodley created the meme challenge, he does admit the loss still hurt him. However, he is focused on fighting a few times in 2022 and eyes a March return in boxing before he goes back into MMA. When and who Woodley will fight in his return is uncertain. However, he has been linked to a bout with Dan Hardy in the past.

    Looking back on the Paul fight, Woodley has made the decision not to allow anyone to define the experience he had leading into and on the night of December 18. The creation of the meme contests helped Woodley take control of the narrative.

    “I won’t allow people to take away the fact that, one, I stepped up when nobody really was available. I was in shape. I was prepared. I was ready. I won every round—I think he might have won the second round when I looked back at the fight. I won every round, even was winning that round up until that one moment. So I won’t let my hand dropping for one second and him perfectly timing a punch at the same time make me completely take away everything that happened,” Woodley said.

    What do you make of Tyron Woodley creating the meme challenge?