Author: mmafighting
Daniel Cormier can understand why Mike Tyson bit Evander Holyfield. He thought about doing the same to Jon Jones in their infamous UFC 178 press conference brawl. On Wednesday’s edition of The Joe Rogan Experience, Cormier confessed his interest in the alpha male behavior of the animal world. Talking about the infamous “bite fight” in 1997, he reflected on what makes someone go “primal” to maintain their dominance, and he revealed he nearly did so when Jones head-butted him at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. “When I was in that press fight with Jon Jones, I was still undefeated at…
Bryce Mitchell is getting one last fight in before the end of the year. The Arkansas native has stepped in to replace an injured Giga Chikadze in a featherweight matchup against Josh Emmett on Dec. 16 at UFC 296. The UFC announced the switch Wednesday night following an initial report by X user MagicM_MMABets. Chikadze was forced to withdraw from the bout earlier this week after suffering a torn groin in training. Chikadze posted a video on social media of the moment he injured himself. Mitchell, 29, now steps into the pay-per-view bout on less than two weeks’ notice. A…
Former UFC flyweight champ Brandon Moreno will be on standby in case anything goes wrong with Alexandre Pantoja vs. Brandon Royval at UFC 296. Multiple people with knowledge of the promotion’s plans confirmed Moreno’s status as backup after an initial report from Eurosport Nederland. UFC 296 takes place Dec. 16 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and is headlined by a welterweight title fight between champ Leon Edwards and ex-interim champ Colby Covington. If Moreno gets the call, he will get a chance to win back the belt he lost to Pantoja after an action-packed fight at UFC 290. The…
Johnny Eblen sees no place for performance-enhancing drugs in MMA. The Bellator middleweight champion has been vocal in his stance against PEDs, most recently criticizing grappling superstar Gordon Ryan for suggesting the UFC could become more “entertaining” after recently parting ways with drug-testing partner U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (the UFC is now working with Drug Free Sport International). In a recent Instagram post, Eblen criticized Ryan for promoting steroid use, and he followed up on those comments during an interview on The MMA Hour. “I just don’t think it’s a good way to promote athletes to do this type of stuff,…
Eddie Alvarez has a theory on what’s delaying the Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler fight. This year, McGregor and Chandler served as coaches on The Ultimate Fighter 31, with the plan being for the two to match up in McGregor’s return fight after more than two years away from MMA. As of yet, that still hasn’t happened nor has the fight even be announced, leaving many to wonder what the holdup is. And Alvarez, who fought McGregor at UFC 205 back in 2016, has a theory based on his prior experience in a dealing with the UFC and McGregor. “Me…
Dan Hooker was supposed to cap off 2023 with another high-profile fight, but he expects it will be another few months before he steps into the octagon again. A broken arm forced Hooker out of the UFC Austin co-main event opposite Bobby Green, which would have marked Hooker’s second outing of the year. “The Hangman” won a thrilling split decision over Jalin Turner this past July at UFC 290 to string together consecutive wins for the first time since 2020. However, his plans to finish the season strong were cut short when he had to undergo surgery for the arm…
Flyweights Muhammad Mokaev and Alex Perez will meet in the first confirmed fight for the UFC’s debut card headed to Saudi Arabia on March 2. Multiple people with knowledge of the promotion’s plans confirmed the news to MMA Fighting on Wednesday after Perez’s management team at Iridium Sports Agency first posted the fight on social media. Widely considered one of the fastest rising stars on the UFC roster, Mokaev will look to keep his undefeated record in tact when he returns in March. The 23-year-old Dagestani born fighter, who now fights out of England, has put together an impressive 5-0…
Molly McCann and Diana Belbita are set to meet in the octagon again. The UFC announced Wednesday that McCann and Belita are booked for a strawweight bout that takes place at an upcoming Feb. 3 UFC APEX event. This is a rematch of their flyweight encounter in October 2019 that McCann won by unanimous decision. It was McCann (13-6) who spoiled Belbita’s UFC debut four years ago in a bout that produced a rare scorecard as McCann won with 30-25 scores across the board. Belbita was penalized a point for a fence grab in the second round, which McCann dominated…
KSI isn’t letting Jake Paul have all the attention this December. In a move that is sure to ruffle Paul’s feathers, KSI announced Wednesday that he and fellow influencer IShowSpeed will stream a live sparring session on YouTube on Dec. 15. The event is set to begin at 11 p.m. ET, not coincidentally around the same time that Paul will be making his walkout for his upcoming boxing match against Andre August in Orlando, Fla. KSI and IShowSpeed made the announcement via social media. All donations and ad revenue from the live YouTube stream are to go to the Anthony…
Michael Chandler finds himself in an awkward position when it comes to UFC 296’s matchup between Ian Machado Garry and Vicente Luque. First, there’s the obvious — Chandler has spent ample time training with both men down at Florida’s Kill Cliff FC gym. Luque is a longtime stalwart of the team and Machado Garry has trained there in the past. But then there’s the less auspicious part of the equation, and that’s the recent drama surrounding Machado Garry and the rash of enemies the Irishman seems to be making within the UFC roster. Just within the past few weeks, UFC…