UFC News

Daniel Cormier reacts to news of 'atypical finding' on Jon Jones drug test
Thomas Taylor - December 23, 2018
A recent Jon Jones drug test has detected trace amounts of turinabol, the same drug he tested positive for after his UFC 214 title fight with Daniel Cormier. This chaotic turn of events has caused the UFC to move the upcoming UFC 232 card, where Jon Jones was expected to rematch Alexander Gustafsson, from Las Vegas to Los Angeles. The card will still occur on December 29 as originally planned. Jones and Gustafsson’s fight will also go ahead as planned in this new setting. To be clear, this does not mean Jon Jones failed a drug test.

BREAKING | Jon Jones drug test catches 'atypical finding,' UFC 232 card moved to LA
Thomas Taylor - December 23, 2018
Chaos has rocked the UFC 232 card, which was scheduled for December 29 in Las Vegas. According to a report from MMAjunkie, a drug test taken by former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones has caught an ‘atypical finding’ — a trace amount of Chlorodehydromethyltestosterone or turinabol. This is the same drug Jones tested positive for after his UFC 214 fight with Daniel Cormier. According to this report from MMAjunkie, the Nevada State Athletic Commission does not have adequate time to investigate this finding and clear Jones to fight on the 29th. As a result, the UFC has moved the entire UFC 232 card to The Forum in Inglewood, California. The card will still occur on the same night.

Cain Velasquez sends Christmas message to upcoming opponent Francis Ngannou
Thomas Taylor - December 23, 2018
Former UFC heavyweight champ Cain Velasquez is officially scheduled to return to the Octagon in the New Year. The heavyweight star is booked for a showdown with recent heavyweight title challenger Francis Ngannou, which will headline the UFC’s return to Phoenix on February 17. While Cain Velasquez and Francis Ngannou are certain to fight each other with the ferocity of sworn enemies, it’s clear that there’s not actually any bad blood between them. In fact, the former champion Velasquez recently took to Twitter to let Ngannou know that his plane ticket to Phoenix is a Christmas present.

Three bold predictions for the UFC in 2019
Cole Shelton - December 23, 2018
2018 has been a great year for the UFC. Yet 2019, which will see the promotion debut on ESPN, could be even greater. While nothing is certain yet, the promotion could make some very big moves in the New Year. Here are a few things we can see happening in 2019.

VIDEO | Watch Amanda Nunes thump Ronda Rousey ahead of UFC 232
Tom Taylor - December 23, 2018
In the co-main event of UFC 232, which goes down on December 29 in Las Vegas, Nevada, UFC women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes will step up to the featherweight division to battle fearsome divisional champion Cris Cyborg. Ahead of this mammoth super fight, the UFC has released video footage of one of the most impressive victory Amanda Nunes has delivered to date: a late 2016 execution of former champion and WMMA icon Ronda Rousey.

Jon Jones explains how he'll win back the fans he's lost
Tom Taylor - December 23, 2018
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones has had a turbulent few years. Though his recent career has included some unforgettable victories over some of the best fighters in the world, it’s also included a number of troubles outside the cage, and a pair of brushes with the United States Anti-Doping Agency. Jones’s troubles outside the cage have cause some of his fans to turn their backs on him. Yet he’s hopeful that he can find a way to win those fans back.

EXCLUSIVE | Kyle Nelson will remain in UFC after stepping in on short notice at UFC 231
Cole Shelton - December 23, 2018
Canadian Kyle Nelson will indeed be a UFC fighter for the foreseeable future. Nelson stepped in on short notice to fight Diego Ferreira at UFC 231. However, he lost the fight in the second round by TKO. Even though he lost the fight, Nelson was satisfied with his performance.

Alexander Gustafsson explains why he's 'not a fan' of Jon Jones
Tom Taylor - December 23, 2018
Alexander Gustafsson is not a fan of Jon Jones, who he’ll battle for the vacant UFC light heavyweight title in the main event of UFC 232 on December 29. The Swedish contender believes professional fighters should be role models, and that Jones’s actions outside the cage make him anything but. “I’m not a fan,” Gustafsson said at the UFC Performance Institute in Las Vegas earlier this week (via MMAjunkie). “We’re all role models here. We have to represent the sport good. I’m not a fan at all. But we’re not here to be friends. We’re here to compete.”

PHOTO | TJ Dillashaw looks shredded ahead of flyweight debut
Tom Taylor - December 23, 2018
On January 19, in the main event of the UFC’s first card on the streaming service ESPN+, UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw will drop down to flyweight to challenge divisional champ Henry Cejudo for his belt. Heading into this fight, one of the biggest challenges TJ Dillashaw is expected to face is the weight cut down to the 125-pound flyweight limit itself. He tends to look pretty buff when he fights in the 135-pound bantamweight division, and some fans have a hard time envisioning him safely making the cut down to flyweight.

Amanda Nunes says fight with Cris Cyborg is bigger than Ronda Rousey fight
Tom Taylor - December 23, 2018
When UFC women’s bantamweight champ Amanda Nunes steps into the cage with Cris Cyborg in the co-main event of UC 232 on December 29, she thinks it will be biggest fight of her career — bigger even than her late 2016 showdown with MMA superstar Ronda Rousey.

EXCLUSIVE | UFC veteran Matt Brown looks back on his career
Cole Shelton - December 22, 2018
Matt Brown has been fighting in the UFC since 2008. During that time, Brown developed into a perennial contender in the UFC’s stacked welterweight division. Ultimately, however, Brown fell just short in his bid to fight for UFC gold. Nonetheless, Matt was fighting some of the top names in the sport, in the likes of Robbie Lawler, Stephen Thompson, Johnny Hendricks, Donald Cerrone, Demian Maia, among others. There is no question that Matt Brown has seen a lot in his storied career. Even with that, ‘The Immortal’ doesn’t really reflect on who he has fought in his career, because for him, it is just a fight no matter who the opponent is.

Khabib Nurmagomedov has reportedly received a mega offer to rematch Conor McGregor
Chris Taylor - December 22, 2018
Current UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov has reportedly received a huge offer to rematch former UFC two-division champ Conor McGregor in 2019. The bitter rivals, Conor and Khabib, first met two months ago in the headliner of October’s UFC 229 event, with “The Eagle” emerging victorious by way of fourth-round submission.

Jon Jones fires back at his critics: "Who said that’s what a champion has to be?"
Chris Taylor - December 22, 2018
Former UFC light heavyweight kingpin Jon Jones will return to the octagon at next Saturday’s UFC 232 event for a title fight rematch with Alexander Gustafsson. Jones and Gustafsson originally collided at UFC 165 in Toronto and produced one of the greatest fights in UFC history.

UFC 232: Jones vs. Gustafsson 2 Fight Card and Start Times
Chris Taylor - December 22, 2018
The octagon will return to T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas next Saturday for the promotions UFC 232: Jones vs. Gustafsson 2 fight card. Jon Jones and Alexander Gustafsson first met at UFC 165 in Toronto and produced arguably the greatest fight in light heavyweight history.

Let's have some fun: Nate Diaz vs. Max Holloway at lightweight
Chris Taylor - December 22, 2018
Max Holloway handed Brian Ortega the first loss of his professional career earlier this month at UFC 231 and made it look easy. The current UFC featherweight kingpin, Holloway battered “T-City” with a record-setting number of significant strikes on route to a fourth-round TKO victory.

"I'm pretty sure Conor McGregor and I will be meeting in the Octagon soon!"
Chris Taylor - December 22, 2018
Fight fans are eagerly awaiting news as to who will be the next man to score a “red panty night” and challenge former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor. Following his submisison victory over Mike Perry at UFC Denver, Donald Cerrone stated his desire to square off with the Irish superstar.

Heavy Lies The Crown: Max Holloway Edition
Chris Taylor - December 22, 2018
In this week’s “Heavy Lies the Crown” feature, BJPENN.com’s Chris Taylor takes a look at the dangerous challenges awaiting current UFC featherweight king Max Holloway. “Blessed” defended his 145-pound title in stunning fashion earlier this month at UFC 231, scoring a lopsided TKO victory over an insanely tough Brian Ortega in Toronto.

VIDEO | Nick Diaz goes off on bizarre rant, but what does it mean?
Chris Taylor - December 22, 2018
If you follow former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz on Instagram, then you know he likes to post a lot of short selfie videos detailing what he is smoking and where he is currently partying. Diaz recently posted a ton of video content on his Instagram, which was later compiled into one long video by BloodyElbow’s Anton Tabuena.