MMA news

LAS VEGAS – MMA Junkie is on scene and reporting live from Friday’s official UFC Fight Night 221 fighter weigh-ins. The weigh-ins take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The Theater at Virgin Hotels hosts Saturday’s card, which streams on ESPN+. Among those weighing in are Petr Yan (16-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) and Merab

SAN JOSE, Calif. – Scott Coker isn’t sure if a deal with Francis Ngannou will work out. Coker expressed interest in signing free agent Ngannou (17-3) after he parted ways with the UFC, and thinks Bellator is a great fit for the former UFC heavyweight champion. Ngannou made it clear that boxing is a priority for

LAS VEGAS – The UFC Fight Night 221 main event is official after Petr Yan and Merab Dvalishvili made weight on Friday. Yan (16-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) and Dvalishvili (15-4 MMA, 8-2 UFC) are scheduled to meet in a bantamweight grudge match on Saturday at The Theater at Virgin Hotels, which streams on ESPN+. It’s

MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom breaks down Bellator’s top bouts. Today, we look at the main card for Bellator 292. Bellator 292 takes place Friday at SAP Center in San Jose, Calif. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie. Welcome to MMAJunkie’s Quick Picks and Prognostications, where I’ll be giving brief,

LAS VEGAS – After almost two years away from the octagon, Austin Lingo is hoping for a quick night at UFC Fight Night 221. Lingo (9-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) returns against Ricardo Ramos (16-4 MMA, 7-3 UFC) on Saturday’s main card at The Theater at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas. The card streams on ESPN+. Lingo was forced to

The PFL is headed back to Atlanta. On Thursday, the promotion announced 2023 second-half regular season dates, all of which will take place at Overtime Elite Arena, a venue the promotion visited for the first time last season. The three events are set for June 8, June 16, and June 23 and will feature the

Mike Swick has won his biggest fight to date. A UFC veteran and “The Ultimate Fighter, Season 1” cast member, Swick was diagnosed in early 2022 with Stage 4 lymphoblastic lymphoma, a cancer that originates in blood cells (lymphocytes) and spreads to other organs. On Wednesday, Swick broke the news that he is now cancer

SAN JOSE, Calif. – It’s not set in stone, but Michael Page thinks a win Friday should mean his next time out will be with a title on the line. Page (20-2 MMA, 16-2 BMMA), who fought for an interim welterweight title in May 2022, returns Friday against Goiti Yamauchi (28-5 MMA, 14-4 BMMA) to

SAN JOSE, Calif. – Benson Henderson held UFC gold. He held WEC gold, too. Saturday at SAP Center, he’ll have the opportunity to win the Bellator lightweight championship, a third major promotional title, and a rare feat. At Bellator 292, Henderson (30-11 MMA, 7-6 BMMA) takes on Usman Nurmagomedov (16-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA), the current

LAS VEGAS – The previous time Ryan Spann sat at a UFC news conference was Feb. 25, and he was devastated. As Spann (21-7 MMA, 7-2 UFC) spoke, he broke down in tears. His scheduled main event battle vs. Nikita Krylov (29-9 MMA, 10-7 UFC) was unexpectedly canceled moments prior and Spann still hadn’t processed

A possible super fight between Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou might not be completely off the table after all for a future matchup. Jones earned the vacant heavyweight title at UFC 285, defeating Ciryl Gane by first-round submission. His heavyweight debut couldn’t have gone much better as he didn’t show any ring rust after a

LAS VEGAS – Simply put, Merab Dvalishivili is not a fan of Petr Yan. Dvalishvili (15-4 MMA, 8-2 UFC) pulled no punches on the microphone at a UFC Fight Night 221 pre-fight news conference Wednesday when he called Yan (16-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) a litany of insults and expletives ahead of their main event bout

SAN JOSE, Calif. – For his first attempt at a title defense, Bellator’s lightweight champion is a betting favorite of almost baffling proportions. Usman Nurmagomedov (16-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA) is a 25-1 favorite against challenger Benson Henderson (30-11 MMA, 7-6 BMMA) in the Bellator 292 main event, which doubles as a quarterfinal fight in the

LAS VEGAS – Alexandr Romanov doesn’t want the judges involved in the outcome of his upcoming fight against Alexander Volkov. In his last outing, Moldova’s Romanov (16-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) left the cage with the first loss of his professional MMA career on his record. Two of the three judges sided with Marcin Tybura at

LAS VEGAS – For the first time in his UFC career, Nikita Krylov was forced out of competing, but is now ready to go two weeks later. At UFC Fight Night 220, Krylov (29-9 MMA, 10-7 UFC) was set to headline opposite Ryan Spann at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Krylov’s 18th fight with

LAS VEGAS – Perennial heavyweight contender Alexander Volkov is curious to see what else new UFC champ Jon Jones can do after returning to claim gold. Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC) returned from a more than three-year layoff this past weekend when he defeated Ciryl Gane by first-round submission in the UFC 285 main event. He

UFC President Dana White recently told the combat sports media that “a lot of sh*t went down” during filming of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 31, leading to a physical confrontation between head coaches (and lightweight rivals) Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler. Turns out White and Co. had themselves a bench-clearing brawl. “Here’s what I learned

Miesha Tate is returning to her original home and will take on a rising contender in June. Tate (19-9 MMA, 6-6 UFC) is set to meet Mayra Bueno Silva (10-2-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC) at a UFC Fight Night event on June 3, which doesn’t currently have an announced location or venue. A person with knowledge