UFC News
Carlos Condit expects to "f**k up" Matt Brown at UFC Fight Island 7
Cole Shelton - January 13, 2021
Carlos Condit expects to beat Matt Brown with ease on Saturday night. In the co-main event of UFC Fight Island 7, Condit and Brown will finally fight one another after being booked two times previously. For Condit, he is eager to share the Octagon with him but expects to finish Brown.
Brendan Fitzgerald details crazy 2020 and preparation for calling fights
Cole Shelton - January 13, 2021
After UFC 248 on March 7, which served as the final event with fans, Brendan Fitzgerald headed on a plane to go to Brasilia. However, while he was in the air, the world changed. As Fitzgerald was set to land in New York before going on another flight to Brasilia everything started to shut down. Sports leagues canceled championships and passed their seasons. For Fitzgerald, he wondered if he should even go on the plane to Brazil as he worried he would be stuck there.
Breaking: Steven Peterson reveals he is out of his fight on February 6, wants Chase Hooper in March
Cole Shelton - January 13, 2021
Steven Peterson will have to wait a bit longer to make his return to the Octagon. Peterson hasn’t fought since he had a highlight-reel spinning backfist KO over Martin Bravo in September of 2019. After that fight, the Fortis MMA product hurt his arm and needed surgery which kept him out of action for all of 2020.
Team Paulo Costa "terrorizing" Dana White for Robert Whittaker matchup
Adam Martin - January 13, 2021
UFC president Dana White said that Team Paulo Costa has been “terrorizing” him to book a matchup against Robert Whittaker. Whittaker and Costa are the No. 1 and No. 2 contenders, respectively, in the UFC middleweight division, behind only champion Israel Adesanya. With the champ moving up to 205lbs for his next fight, it’s put the 185lbs division in a bit of a tricky situation moving forward. There’s no guarantee Adesanya will even return to the weight class should he defeat Jan Blachowicz for the light heavyweight belt at UFC 259, so the rest of the top contenders are essentially stuck in limbo at the moment.
UFC on ABC 1: Holloway vs. Kattar Full Betting Odds
Adam Martin - January 13, 2021
Check out the full betting odds for this weekend’s UFC on ABC 1 event headlined by featherweight contenders Max Holloway and Calvin Kattar. In the headlining bout, No. 1 ranked Holloway returns to the Octagon for the first time since his controversial split decision loss to UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 251. Many people feel that Holloway is the uncrowned champ right now, but it was a hard sell for the UFC to book a trilogy fight this soon. Instead, Holloway returns to the cage against a very tough opponent in No. 6 ranked Calvin Kattar, who won two fights in 2020 over Jeremy Stephens and Dan Ige.
Matt Brown reveals Carlos Condit fight "could be my last"
Cole Shelton - January 13, 2021
Matt Brown knows the end is near for his career. The 40-year-old is set to be the co-main event of UFC Fight Island 7 against Carlos Condit. It is a fight that has been booked two times previously, but Brown was forced to pull out with injuries both times.
Khabib Nurmagomedov retirement talk will take five minutes, says Dana White
Tom Taylor - January 13, 2021
UFC President Dana White says his retirement talk with unbeaten lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov should only take five minutes. Nurmagomedov last fought in October, when he elevated his pro record to 29-0 with a second-round submission of Justin Gaethje. In his post-fight interview with Jon Anik, he shocked viewers by announcing his retirement from mixed martial arts.
Dana White sends another warning to illegal streamers: "I look forward to the crying and the begging"
Tom Taylor - January 13, 2021
UFC President Dana White has sent another ominous warning to those that take part in the piracy and illegal streaming of UFC events. Earlier this month, White took to Instagram where he vowed to catch and punish illegal streamers.
Nate Diaz fight in the works, according to Dana White
Tom Taylor - January 13, 2021
UFC President Dana White says he’s currently working on a fight for fan favorite lightweight and welterweight star, Nate Diaz. Diaz is one of the most popular fighters on the UFC roster, but has not fought since November, 2019, when he was stopped by Jorge Masvidal in the promotion’s first and only “BMF” title fight.
Commentary teams set for UFC Fight Island triple-header
Tom Taylor - January 13, 2021
The commentary teams for the UFC’s upcoming three-event stint on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi have been made official. The UFC is set to promote three events on Fight Island starting this weekend. The first will be UFC Fight Island 7, headlined by a featherweight fight between Max Holloway and Calvin Kattar, on Saturday, January 16. Next up will be UFC Fight Island 8, headlined by a welterweight clash between Neil Magny and Michael Chiesa, on Wednesday, January 20. The fun will conclude on Saturday, January 23 with the stacked UFC 257 pay-per-view, headlined by a lightweight clash between top-5 contenders Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier.
Dana White says brain injury is "just part of the gig" in MMA
Tom Taylor - January 13, 2021
UFC President Dana White says brain injury is “just part of the gig” for those who compete in combat sports like mixed martial arts. Brain injury has been a widely discussed topic inside the MMA bubble this year. Earlier this month, the UFC donated $1 million to the Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health in Las Vegas. Then, earlier this week, MMA Fighting published an in-depth long-form article on UFC veteran Spencer Fisher’s struggle with CTE. In the article, Fisher detailed problems with dizzy spells, reduced motor function, memory loss, depression, and more. He and his wife also discussed their struggle to find and pay for the treatment he needs.
Jairzinho Rozenstruik, Ciryl Gane slated for heavyweight showdown on March 13
Tom Taylor - January 13, 2021
A heavyweight clash between top-10 contenders Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Ciryl Gane has been booked for March 13, according to French publication La Seuer. Gane, a former Muay Thai kickboxer, will enter this fight with the No. 7 spot in the UFC heavyweight rankings—a position he earned with a knockout of former heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos in his last fight. Prior to that, the Frenchman picked up wins over Tanner Boser, Don’Tale Mayes and Raphael Pessoa in his first three appearances in the Octagon. Before joining the UFC roster, he enjoyed a brief reign as the TKO heavyweight champion in Canada.
Leon Edwards vs. Khamzat Chimaev gets new date, now scheduled for March 13
Tom Taylor - January 13, 2021
A welterweight fight between Leon Edwards and Khamzat Chimaev has been rescheduled once again, this time for the main event of a card on March 13. News of this matchup’s new date was first reported by MMA Junkie, who received the information directly from UFC President Dana White.
Dusko Todorovic eager to hand Punahele Soriano his first loss and prove he's the better prospect
Cole Shelton - January 12, 2021
Dusko Todorovic was surprised with the name on his bout agreement. At UFC Fight Island 7, Todorovic, who is 10-0, will battle fellow undefeated prospect, Punahele Soriano. Although the fight was surprising to many fans, given both Todorvic and Soriano are top prospects, the Serbian no longer cares as he is now just focused on the task at hand and figured he would’ve fought Soriano eventually.
Stephen Thompson: 'I'm gonna have that belt around my waist' in 2021
Drake Riggs - January 12, 2021
Stephen Thompson looked better than ever in his last time out. With the momentum gained to close out 2020, “Wonderboy” targets a big 2021. The last UFC main event of the past year saw welterweight’s Geoff Neal presented with a big opportunity — a chance to leapfrog many of the division’s top contenders with a win over a former title challenger.
Cody Garbrandt targeting Jose Aldo fight for April return to the Octagon
Adam Martin - January 12, 2021
Former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt is targeting an April matchup with legend Jose Aldo for his return to the Octagon in 2021. Garbrandt snapped a three-fight losing skid at UFC 250 in June 2020 when he KO’d Raphael Assuncao in a devastating fashion. The UFC matchmakers then booked Garbrandt in his 125lbs debut against UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC 255, but an injury to his arm combined with a rough battle with COVID-19 led to Garbrandt losing his flyweight title shot. Instead, Alex Perez fought Figueiredo and suffered a first-round stoppage loss while Garbrandt watched from home.
Max Holloway promises to do "something special" against Calvin Kattar
Cole Shelton - January 12, 2021
Max Holloway is looking to do something special when he fights Calvin Kattar in the main event of UFC Fight Island 7. Holloway is set to fight in his first non-title fight since he beat Ricardo Lamas at UFC 199. Although he won’t be fighting for a title, he will be on network TV as the event will air live on ABC. For Holloway, he is excited to be the main event for the first card on ABC and promises to do something special for the fans.
Photo | Urijah Faber looking shredded at age 41
Adam Martin - January 12, 2021
UFC Hall of Famer Urijah Faber is looking absolutely shredded at age 41 ahead of a potential return to the Octagon in 2021. Faber is the former WEC featherweight champion and he was a long-time star for the UFC during the 2010s. The California native first retired in 2016 following a decision win over Brad Pickett, but he returned to the Octagon in 2019 to make a comeback. In his return fight, Faber scored an incredible KO win over Ricky Simon in his native Sacramento. He was then booked against rising star Petr Yan but he got knocked out at UFC 245. Faber has not fought since then, and that fight was in December 2019.