UFC News
Conor McGregor responds to Ben Askren
Chris Taylor - September 11, 2019
Former UFC champion Conor McGregor has responded to Ben Askren. The former Bellator and ONE champion, Askren, had taken to Twitter yesterday evening where he issued the following statement insinuating that McGregor’s days competing at a championship level are gone.
Brendan Schaub responds to backlash after bashing strawweight division
Thomas Taylor - September 11, 2019
Brendan Schaub didn’t watch the recent UFC Shenzhen card, which was topped by a strawweight title fight between challenger Weili Zhang and champ Jessica Andrade. In fact, in the wake of this UFC Shenzhen main event, which Zhang won by first-round TKO, Schaub went so far as to claim he doesn’t care about the strawweight division. “People are Tweeting me saying ‘Oh what’s up now Schaub, didn’t call Zhang over Jessica Andrade,’” he said on his Below the Belt podcast recently. “I sure didn’t! Or in the [replies to the] post about my son [people were saying] ‘Oh where the f**k were you on Zhang vs. Andrade?’
Neil Magny cleared by USADA
Adam Martin - September 11, 2019
Welterweight contender Neil Magny has been cleared by USADA after being provisionally suspended before his scheduled fight with Vicente Luque back in May. Magny shared the news on his social media Wednesday. He said his fourth-month provisional suspension is over, and he plans on returning to the Octagon shortly. He will face no further suspension, fine, or sanction.
Justin Gaethje names the only opponents he'll accept after 'Cowboy'
Tom Taylor - September 11, 2019
This weekend, in the main event of UFC Vancouver, Justin Gaethje will step into the Octagon with a fellow fan-favorite in Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone. If Gaethje is able to defeat Cerrone, who he considers a friend, he believes he’ll be right near the summit of the lightweight mountain, and will only accept a few fights thereafter. One, he says, is a fight against the winner of an expected but yet unscheduled title fight between divisional champ Khabib Nurmagomedov and top contender Tony Ferguson. The other is a fight with a man he’s become increasingly hostile toward; former two-division champion Conor McGregor.
VIDEO | Johnny Walker flaunts athleticism with unbelievable flying knee
Tom Taylor - September 11, 2019
UFC light heavyweight contender Johnny Walker is freakishly athletic. He’s already proven that in his fights, and now, he’s reaffirming it in training. In a video that’s been circulating on Twitter, Walker can be seen landing a flying knee on a focus mitt held higher than the top of his own head. It really has to be seen to be believed. Check it out below (via @DovySimuMMA on Twitter):
Paul Felder welcomes Edson Barboza trilogy — under one condition
Tom Taylor - September 11, 2019
Paul Felder and Edson Barboza are now tied 1-1 across two previous fights. The two lightweight contenders first met in July of 2015, in Felder’s second UFC bout. On that night, Barboza walked away with a unanimous decision win, handing Felder his first pro loss. Both fighters pocketed Fight of the Night bonus checks.
Manager denies Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson is next
Tom Taylor - September 11, 2019
Now that UFC lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov has vanquished Dustin Poirier, the expectation is that he will fight Tony Ferguson next, or perhaps Conor Mcgregor if Ferguson is unavailable. According to Nurmagomedov’s manager Ali Abdelaziz, however, neither Ferguson nor McGregor is likely to be next for the lightweight king. Instead, the manager says Nurmagomedov is more likely to battle retired former UFC welterweight and middleweight champ Georges St-Pierre.
Reddit user exposes UFC rankings system
Adam Martin - September 11, 2019
A Reddit user has dug deep into the UFC rankings, and has exposed a flawed system that features a number of panelists who do not actually even cover MMA. Reddit user u/kneeco28 posted an in-depth rundown of all 14 panelists on the UFC rankings panel. What he found was that a third of the panelists are not even active MMA media members. Remember, these are the same people who contribute to the rankings, which have an inexorable impact on fighter promotion, matchmaking, salaries and Reebok pay.
Leon Edwards lays claim to title shot: 'F**k Colby Covington'
Mike Heck - September 11, 2019
Leon Edwards, for a moment, had a world title opportunity presented to him during the craziness of booking the main event for UFC 244. First, it was Kamaru Usman vs. Colby Covington that was discussed, then Usman vs. Jorge Masvidal, and ultimately onto Masvidal vs. Edwards for the vacant title before landing on the signed headliner, Masvidal taking on Nate Diaz. “Rocky” has won eight fights in a row including his most recent victory over former world champion Rafael dos Anjos in the main event of UFC San Antonio. With Edwards’ recent surge, and Covington’s internal battle with the UFC going on, the 28-year-old is staking his claim at the title shot over the brash Covington.
Colby Covington: 'There might be a brawl' at American Top Team
Tom Taylor - September 11, 2019
Colby Covington is a proud member of American Top Team. Unfortunately, Covington has become increasingly at odds with many of his American Top Team stablemates — particularly his long-time friend and fellow welterweight contender Jorge Masvidal, and recent lightweight title challenger Dustin Poirier. Over the last few weeks, Covington has taken very public shots at both Masvidal and Poirier, and the pair have not hesitated to fire back. In fact, both Masvidal and Poirier have hinted things could get tense if they encounter Covington at American Top Team.
Donald Cerrone discusses his history with Justin Gaethje
Natasha Hooper - September 11, 2019
Donald Cerrone has some history with his UFC Vancouver foe Justin Gaethje. Cerrone will be facing Gaethje in the main event of UFC Vancouver on Saturday, September 14. Neither fighter will hold back when the cage door closes, yet Cerrone spoke fondly of his opponent in an interview with James Lynch.
Jorge Masvidal says 'heads are going to pop' when his UFC 244 salary is revealed
Natasha Hooper - September 11, 2019
Jorge Masvidal is scheduled to get a serious payday for his upcoming fight against Nate Diaz at UFC 244. The welterweight stars will collide on Saturday, November 2 at Madison Square Garden in New York. The highly anticipated matchup has been in the works since Nate Diaz called out ‘Gamebred’ following his unanimous win against Anthony Pettis at UFC 241. They will be fighting for the self-devised ‘Baddest Motherf**ker Title,’ which will get chins wagging and paychecks flying.
UFC 245 could feature three title fights
Adam Martin - September 10, 2019
The UFC’s year-end pay-per-view card this December in Las Vegas, UFC 245, could potentially feature three title fights on it for a true blockbuster end to 2019. ESPN’s Ariel Helwani speculated that the UFC could consider stacking UFC 245 with three title fights. Here’s what the scribe tweeted.
Ben Askren claims that Conor McGregor's 'champ level' days are gone
Cole Shelton - September 10, 2019
Ben Askren doesn’t believe that Conor McGregor will ever be a UFC champion again. McGregor, who is the former UFC featherweight and lightweight champion was also the first-ever simultaneous two-division champion in the UFC. Yet, according to Ben Askren, he believes the Irishman made too much money to have the desire to train at a world champ level.
Conor McGregor responds to Dustin Poirier
Christopher Taylor - September 10, 2019
Former two division UFC champion Conor McGregor has responded to Dustin Poirier’s request for a rematch. After falling short in his quest to dethrone undefeated lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 242, Dustin Poirier appeared to be contemplating retirement.
Breaking! Jacare Souza moves up to light heavyweight to face Jan Blachowicz at UFC São Paulo
Cole Shelton - September 10, 2019
Jan Blachowicz will not receive the light heavyweight title shot against Jon Jones he so desires. The Polish standout has been campaigning for a shot at ‘Bones’ ever since he knocked out Luke Rockhold back at UFC 239. According to ESPN, Jan Blachowicz will welcome Jacare Souza to the light heavyweight division. The fight will headline a UFC Fight Night on Nov. 16 in São Paulo, Brazil, according to Brett Okamoto, per UFC president Dana White.
UFC rankings update: Khabib Nurmagomedov doesn't get his wish
Thomas Taylor - September 10, 2019
After his UFC 242 submission defeat of Dustin Poirier, UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov wanted the No. 1 spot in the UFC’s pound for pound rankings. Unfortunately, the champ has not gotten his wish. On Wednesday, the official UFC rankings were updated, and while they do feature some interesting changes, Nurmagomedov has not moved from the No. 2 spot on the pound-for-pound list. That spot is still held by UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
Breaking! Stephen Thompson set to return at UFC 244 against surging contender Vicente Luque
Chris Taylor - September 10, 2019
Former UFC welterweight title challenger Stephen Thompson will return to the Octagon at November’s highly anticipated UFC 244 event in New York. “Wonderboy” will square off with Vicente Luque under the bright lights of Madison Square Garden on November 2.