UFC News
Tony Ferguson explains how his two recent losses were “the best thing that was for me and my family”
Cole Shelton - April 12, 2021
Tony Ferguson went nearly a decade without losing and then in 2020, “El Cucuy” went 0-2, but he believes those losses were the best thing to ever happen to him. Ferguson first fought Justin Gaethje for the interim lightweight title in May, which served as the first event back for the UFC from the pandemic. Unfortunately, Ferguson suffered a fifth-round TKO loss. El Cucuy then took a short notice fight against Charles Oliveira at UFC 256 and lost a clear-cut decision in a fight he was dominated in.
Kevin Lee wants to replace Dustin Poirier against Conor McGregor on July 10: "I can be ready"
Cole Shelton - April 12, 2021
Kevin Lee is hoping Conor McGregor is serious that he won’t be fighting Dustin Poirier on July 10. After Poirier took to social media to say the Irishman never donated the $500k to his charity as he promised, McGregor responded with his reasoning. Conor said that he needed to know where the money would be going, and after a couple more tweets from Poirier, “Notorious” said he will no longer be fighting Poirier at UFC 264 on July 10.
Jake Paul promises to finish Ben Askren in "six minutes or less" in their boxing match on April 17
Cole Shelton - April 12, 2021
Jake Paul is confident he will finish Ben Askren within two rounds in their boxing match on Saturday night. Paul, the brash YouTuber, is set for his third professional bout against Askren in Atlanta, Georgia which is a fascinating fight.
Julian Marquez reveals he nearly threw up before fighting Sam Alvey due to nerves: "I grew up watching him"
Cole Shelton - April 12, 2021
Julian Marquez was in no rush to return after his UFC 258 win over Maki Pitolo, but a short notice fight against Sam Alvey came up that Marquez jumped on. Originally, Alvey was set to drop down to middleweight to face Zak Cummings, who is Marquez’s teammate. Unfortunately, Cummings was forced out of the bout and when he told the team, “The Cuban Missile Crisis” knew it was a good fight for him.
Conor McGregor's manager blasts Dustin Poirier for "low move" of going public about donation money, "The Diamond" responds
Cole Shelton - April 12, 2021
Audie Attar, the manager of Conor McGregor, has blasted Dustin Poirier for going public about McGregor not donating to the Good Fight Foundation. Ahead of McGregor and Poirier’s rematch at UFC 257, the Irishman confirmed he would be donating $500k to Poirier’s charity. However, on Sunday night, “The Diamond” revealed on social media that McGregor never donated. Yet, for the Irishman, he claims he never heard of where the money would be going.
Michael Chandler wants to fight at UFC 262 and UFC 264
Adam D Martin - April 12, 2021
UFC lightweight Michael Chandler revealed his ambitious plan of fighting Charles Oliveira at UFC 262 and then Conor McGregor at UFC 264. Chandler is currently set to take on Oliveira for the vacant UFC lightweight title in the main event of UFC 262 on May 15. Chandler recently said in an interview that, assuming a win over “Do Bronx,” he wants to fight McGregor by the year’s end. However, with McGregor now suggesting that his fight against Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 could be off due to Poirier bringing to the public eye McGregor’s non-donation to his charity “The Good Fight Foundation,” it’s possible that this fight could be in jeopardy. McGregor himself said as much on Twitter say, suggesting that he will be looking at other options for UFC 264.
Conor McGregor says "the fight is off" with Dustin Poirier at UFC 264: "I'm going to fight someone else"
Adam D Martin - April 12, 2021
UFC superstar Conor McGregor trashed Dustin Poirier in a Twitter post and said that their fight at UFC 264 is not going to happen now. On Sunday night, Poirier took to his social media to reveal that Team McGregor never made good on its promise of a $500,000 donation to “The Good Fight Foundation.” In January, McGregor agreed to pay the money after their fight at UFC 257, and McGregor’s manager even confirmed the money was sent. Poirier, however, says his team never saw the money, and McGregor later said that he didn’t send the cash because they wanted a detailed list of where the money would go before sending it. Poirier, in turn, alleges that Team McGregor ghosted him and stopped responding to his emails about the money.
Mackenzie Dern issues statement after submitting Nina Nunes at UFC Vegas 23
Adam D Martin - April 12, 2021
UFC women’s strawweight standout Mackenzie Dern has issued a statement following her submission win over Nina Nunes at UFC Vegas 23. Dern was facing the toughest test of her career to date in the form of Nunes when she fought her at this past Saturday’s UFC Vegas 23. Though Dern was the betting underdog heading into the fight, she showed the odds were completely wrong as she was able to quickly get the fight to the ground and grab the arm of Nunes and finish her by submission. With the win, Dern improved to 11-1 overall in MMA including a 6-1 record in the Octagon.
Dustin Poirier responds after Conor McGregor suggests he signed up for “a donation, not a debt”
Adam D Martin - April 12, 2021
UFC lightweight Dustin Poirier responded after Conor McGregor suggested that the superstar signed up for “a donation, not a debt.” On Sunday night, Poirier made the stunning revelation that Team McGregor had not donated money to his “Good Fight Foundation” as was previously reported. In January, Team McGregor said that $500,000 was on the way to Poirier’s wife Jolie. However, Poirier claimed that the team never received the money, and after taking social media to reveal that, McGregor piped back by confirming that the money was indeed not sent, with the Irishman suggesting that he signed up for “a donation, not a debt.”
Daniel Rodriguez explains Joe Schilling's request to throw a kick they practiced “on mushrooms” during fight with Mike Perry
Harry Kettle - April 12, 2021
Daniel Rodriguez has explained cornerman Joe Schilling’s request to throw a kick that the pair had done when they were “on mushrooms”. Rodriguez returned to action this past weekend and put down a dominant performance against Mike Perry, easily winning via unanimous decision on the scorecards. Many felt as if Perry had a decent chance of coming away with a win on Saturday night, but Rodriguez soon should that theory down.
Conor McGregor reacts after Dustin Poirier claims he didn't follow through on promised charitable donation
Christopher Taylor - April 11, 2021
Conor McGregor has reacted after Dustin Poirier accused him of not following through on a promised charitable donation following their rematch at UFC 257. McGregor and Poirier collided for a second time on January 24 in Abu Dhabi. The pair had originally met in a featherweight contest at UFC 178, with the Irishman emerging victorious by way of first round knockout.
Dustin Poirier suggests Team Conor McGregor didn’t follow through with promise of charitable donation after UFC 257
Adam Martin - April 11, 2021
UFC lightweight Dustin Poirier suggested Team Conor McGregor didn’t follow through with their promise of a charitable donation after UFC 257. Before agreeing to a rematch at UFC 257, both McGregor and Poirier had temporarily discussed a charity MMA fight outside of it, where McGregor was to donate money to Poirier’s “The Good Fight Foundation.” In January, McGregor Sports & Entertainment CEO Alan Geraghty confirmed that Team McGregor made a $500,000 donation. At the time, Team McGregor told MMAjunkie.com they reach out to Poirier’s wife Jolie to transfer the money. However, it appears as though Team Poirier may not have seen the check.
Ali Abdelaziz praises Coach Khabib Nurmagomedov: "He's one of the best coaches I've ever seen"
Adam Martin - April 11, 2021
Ali Abdelaziz praised fighter-turned-coach Khabib Nurmagomedov, saying that “he’s one of the best coaches I’ve ever seen.” Nurmagomedov recently retired from mixed martial arts, leaving the competitive aspect of the sport with a pristine 29-0 record. Now that Nurmagomedov is no longer an active competitor, he is transitioning into coaching fighters. We have seen him in the corner at recent UFC and Bellator events, cornering fighters such as Islam Makhachev and Usman Nurmagomedov, as he looks to succeed in this next stage of his career in combat sports.
Kevin Holland says he will work on his wrestling with Daniel Cormier at AKA
Adam Martin - April 11, 2021
UFC middleweight contender Kevin Holland says that he will work on his wrestling with Daniel Cormier at American Kickboxing Academy. For the second straight fight, Holland was taken down and wrestled as the blueprint to defeat “Trailblazer” is obvious at this point. After losing a unanimous decision to Derek Brunson last month, Holland tried to capitalize on a short-notice opportunity by fighting Mervin Vettori on short notice at UFC Vegas 23. But just like the Brunson fight, the Vettori matchup once again displayed Holland’s weakness in his takedown defense. As gifted as he is with his hands and his submissions, his wrestling is the biggest hole in his game.
Daniel Rodriguez issues statement following lopsided win over Mike Perry at UFC Vegas 23
Adam Martin - April 11, 2021
UFC welterweight Daniel Rodriguez issued a statement following his lopsided win over the durable Mike Perry at UFC Vegas 23. In what was arguably the best performance of his UFC career to date, Rodriguez was able to outstrike Perry for 15 minutes and bloody and batter his face as he took home a clear-cut unanimous decision. Though Perry landed some good shots of his own and even had a couple of takedowns mixed in, it was essentially all one-way traffic for Rodriguez in this fight. He controlled the striking range with his jab as his southpaw stance proved far too difficult to overcome. The end was result was a win for D-Rod and another loss for Perry.
Check out the UFC Venum sponsorship payouts for first event under new relationship
Adam Martin - April 11, 2021
The first event under the new UFC and Venum partnership took place on Saturday night, and here are the disclosed payouts for the fighters. The UFC and Reebok’s seven-year deal recently ended, and the world’s leading MMA promotion has officially begun its relationship with Venum. As part of the deal, the fighters are required to wear the Venum clothing all week long and during the fight. The athletes are then given a piece of the pie from the UFC Venum deal. The companies have promised to slightly increase the pay for the athletes, and MMAjunkie.com has the full list of payouts for UFC Vegas 23.
KC Chiefs stars Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill respond to challenge from UFC’s Julian Marquez
Adam D Martin - April 11, 2021
Kansas City Chiefs superstars Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and Tyreek Hill responded to the challenge received from UFC’s Julian Marquez. Marquez defeated Sam Alvey in a violent fashion when he choked his opponent out cold in the second round of their UFC Vegas 23 middleweight bout. The last time we saw Marquez win a fight, he asked Miley Cyrus out on a date after he submitted Maki Pitolo at UFC 258. This time around, Marquez used his post-fight speech as an opportunity to call out the KC Chiefs star trio of Mahomes, Kelce, and Hill, to a game of badminton or pickleball. Marquez, born and raised in Kansas City, is training at Glory MMA in KC under James Krause, and the players all responded to him.
Rose Namajunas takes political jab at Weili Zhang ahead of UFC 261: “Better dead than red”
Adam D Martin - April 11, 2021
Rose Namajunas took a political jab at UFC women’s strawweight champion Weili Zhang ahead of UFC 261, saying “Better dead than red.” Namajunas steps back into the Octagon on April 24 when she takes on Zhang with the 115lbs belt on the line. Ahead of the fight, “Thug” spoke to the Lithuanian National Radio and Television about the fight with Zhang. Namajunas suggested that because of her background as an American – Lithuanian and Zhang’s background as a Chinese fighter, there is extra motivation going into this matchup at UFC 261.