Author: mmafighting
In early 2021, after bouncing around a variety of different networks and platforms, Bellator finally found a long-term broadcast home on Showtime. While the move appeared to be promising at the time, that relationship ultimately lasted less than three years before the promotion’s parent company Paramount Global offloaded Bellator to the PFL in an industry-shaking deal this past week. In retrospect, longtime Bellator executive Mike Kogan believes the promotion’s fate was sealed once it landed within Showtime’s purview, though through no fault of the premium network’s doing. “I don’t want to point the finger at Showtime and say specifically, ‘Everybody…
Paddy Pimblett doesn’t understand why Tony Ferguson is working with David Goggins ahead of their pay-per-view matchup. Pimblett will face the former interim champion at UFC 296 on Dec. 16 in Las Vegas. “El Cucuy” has made headlines for going through “hell week” with the retired U.S. Navy SEAL, but Pimblett feels that what Goggins would typically help people with from a physical standpoint, Ferguson already has that. “I think it’s bizarre,” Pimblett said on The Energized Show. “I think it’s f****** stupid. “If there’s two things Tony’s never needed help with is his mental state — because look at…
UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland on Monday posted videos of a confrontation outside his Las Vegas home with a man he said committed domestic abuse. Strickland can be seen in the videos pointing what appears to be a gun at the man, whose face is blurred out. Another video shows he and another unidentified man pursuing what appears to be the same man, whom he shoves to the ground and appears to hold him at gunpoint as lights flash in the background. According to Strickland, the man was “drunk stomping out a girl, a security guard seen it, he jumped…
Urijah Faber believes Sean O’Malley becoming the UFC bantamweight champion is a good thing for the division. O’Malley captured the title with a second-round TKO win over Aljamain Sterling at UFC 292 in Boston. While a lot of people counted O’Malley out of the fight due to the stylistic discrepancies between Sterling and O’Malley, Faber always knew “Sugar” had it in him to wear UFC gold. “It’s a great lift to the division,” Faber told MMA Fighting. “We need stars in there and he’s the star right now. People always try to discredit, it happened to me too, ‘Oh, you’re…
Michael “Venom” Page is yet to put pen to paper since entering free agency, but the UFC is definitely on his radar. The longtime Bellator star announced his free agency this past summer, immediately generating buzz as to where he might land next. Page, 36, compiled an impressive highlight reel competing inside the Bellator cage while also putting together a 17-2 record for the promotion. Page told The MMA Fan Show that he can’t quite confirm that he’s making the jump to the UFC octagon after lightheartedly being pressed on the situation. “I wish I could say for certain that…
Jorge Masvidal thinks he would destroy Jake Paul or Nate Diaz if they ever met in a ring. In April, Jorge Masvidal retired from MMA following his unanimous decision loss to Gilbert Burns at UFC 287. Since then, Masvidal has spent his time growing his fight promotion, Gamebred Fighting, but the two-time UFC title challenger admits that the allure of combat still calls to him. “I do miss it but at the same time like, man, I don’t know,” Masvidal said on The MMA Hour. “MMA stuff, because I did that for 20 years. You know what I would like…
The Mixed Martial Arts Hour is back in your life! Below is a rundown of Monday’s show, which begins at 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT / 6 p.m. UK time. 1 p.m. ET: We recap another busy weekend in combat sports and more. 1:30 p.m.: Longtime Bellator executive Mike Kogan discusses the sale and more. 2 p.m.: PFL light heavyweight champion Impa Kasanganay looks back on his remarkable run from the PFL Challenger Series to Friday’s $1 million finale. 2:25 p.m.: Joe Pyfer previews his upcoming UFC bout against Jack Hermansson. 2:50 p.m.: Skye Nicolson reflects on Saturday’s…
Tom Aspinall knows who he wants his first interim UFC heavyweight title defense to come against. UFC 295 took a shocking late hit in its build-up earlier this month. The all-time great Jon Jones was set to make his first title defense as the undisputed UFC heavyweight title holder. Previously matched with arguably the greatest heavyweight of all-time Stipe Miocic, “Bones,” unfortunately, was forced out of the bout after he suffered a torn pectoral muscle. The legend is now expected to be sidelined for roughly eight months. The co-main event was shifted to Aspinall vs. his fellow top contender Sergei…
UFC lightweight Tony Ferguson has settled a court case stemming from a May arrest on DUI charges after reaching a plea deal with prosecutors. According to online court records, the DUI charge was dismissed with Ferguson pleading Nolo Contendere to a lesser charge of wet reckless driving upon a highway. As a condition of his plea deal, Ferguson will serve one year of probation. MMAJunkie initially reported the news. Nolo contendere means a defendant in a criminal case accepts a conviction but does not admit guilt. The plea deal concluded the court case surrounding Ferguson after he was arrested and…
Tom Aspinall won’t say he’s the best MMA heavyweight in the world. But he is the best MMA heavyweight in the world right now. Aspinall can’t discount UFC heavyweight champ Jon Jones, who remains on the horizon after being forced to pull out of UFC 295 due to injury. But at this very moment, he believes he’s the best by default. “That’s straight-up facts,” Aspinall said after UFC 295 on The MMA Hour. “I’m not trying to blow my own horn. Jon Jones is inactive right now. Francis Ngannou is inactive right now in MMA. As it stands right now,…