The UFC’s 2024 schedule is in the books. This past year was busy and booming not only for fighters, promoters, and coaches, but referees, as well. The UFC held events in nine U.S. jurisdictions (California, Florida, Kentucky, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Nevada, Texas and Utah) and nine international countries ( Australia, Brazil, Canada, France,
Day: December 20, 2024
One of the most violent fighters in Bellator history took the gloves off in retirement in 2024 – but also perhaps to signal his entry into bareknuckle boxing. Connecticut’s Brennan Ward has signed with BKFC, the promotion announced recently. He will debut Feb. 1 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., an area in which
Francis Ngannou will be rooting for Tyson Fury to defeat Oleksandr Usyk on Saturday with hopes of setting up a rematch between them in 2025. Former UFC heavyweight champion and current PFL Super Fight champion Ngannou still has a sour taste in his mouth stemming from his controversial split decision loss to Fury in October
Jim Miller already is the UFC’s all-time wins leader, and from a percentage standpoint, he’s the leader by a landslide. Miller’s 27 UFC wins are a 17 percent bump from the next few on the list, including former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira, with 23. In the race to 30, which at the UFC’s inception and
Even if Bellator lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov intentionally used performance-enhancing drugs, Paul Hughes believes it wouldn’t make a difference in their upcoming fight. As we’ve seen over the years, high-level fighters coming out of Ireland are a confident bunch, and Hughes (13-1) is no different. He may not be as loud and bodacious as Conor
T.J. Dillashaw has a bold take on UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria. Undefeated Topuria (16-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) is coming off back-to-back knockouts of featherweight greats Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 298 and Max Holloway at UFC 308 in title fights. Dillashaw doesn’t just see Topuria as the best boxer in the UFC. “I think Topuria’s
Five fighters who competed Saturday at UFC on ESPN 63 in Tampa, Fla. have received indefinite medical suspensions as the results of of potential injuries. Not among those five, however, were headliners Joaquin Buckley and Colby Covington. Despite Buckley (21-6 MMA, 11-4 UFC) being named the victor due to a doctor stoppage because of a
Gilbert Melendez considers himself as well-educated about the sport of MMA as anyone in the industry, so he thinks the following advice should carry weight. During his nearly 17-year career as a professional fighter, Melendez (22-8) claimed and defended the Strikeforce lightweight title, challenged for a UFC championship and provided many memorable wars. Since his
If you blinked, you would have missed Robelis Despaigne’s first fight since his UFC release. At Karate Combat 51, Despaigne stepped into the karate pit for his debut fight with the promotion to face Dominik Jedrzejczyk. Despaigne threw a total of two strikes: a kick and a right hand. The right clipped Jedrzejczyk, ending the
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best knockouts from December 2024: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Knockout of the Month award for December. At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by
MMA is a sport of controlled violence between two willing combatants, and few enjoy witnessing that more than UFC’s Laura Sanko. Sanko is one of the UFC’s primary color commentators, and within that role she frequently gets to sit up close and personal next to the octagon. She sees the damage inflicted and dished out