Martial Arts News

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Javier Mendez, who helps to coach Khabib Nurmagomedov at American Kickboxing Academy, believes it would be an ugly night for Conor McGregor if he was granted a rematch with the Dagestani champion.

Given the way things played out at UFC 257, where McGregor suffered a second-round KO defeat to Dustin Poirier in the evening’s main event, it’s not exactly the hottest of takes. However, Mendez has been on record as saying McGregor was . Now, he believes the Irish star has regressed considerably and a second bout with “The Eagle” would not be competitive. Nurmagomedov defeated McGregor via fourth-round submission in their first meeting at UFC 229 in October 2018.

“[McGregor] would’ve got smashed,” Mendez said in an interview with Submission Radio. “Khabib’s gotten better. He would’ve gotten smashed. He would have gotten smashed, straight up. Khabib’s better. He’s better than he was when they fought two years a…

"I tried to push forward the whole fight so I feel so excited about the results."-Joselyne Edwards (@JoselyneMMA29) talks about her victory at #UFCFightIsland7 after taking the fight on short notice.#InAbuDhabi | @VisitAbuDhabi pic.twitter.com/FUvbLdjn9w

— UFC News (@UFCNews) January 16, 2021

Joselyne Edwards will make a quick turnaround for her sophomore Octagon appearance.

Edwards will step in for Nicco Montano and face Karol Rosa in a bantamweight scrap at UFC Fight Night 184 on Feb. 6. Milenio was first to report the new booking. A reason for Montano’s withdrawal was not disclosed. UFC Fight Night 184 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a heavyweight showdown between Alistair Overeem and Alexander Volkov. The card will stream in its entirety on ESPN+.

Edwards made her first promotional foray at UFC on ABC 1 on Jan. 16, when she outpointed Yanan Wu in a preliminary matchup. The 25-year-old Panamanian has been…

Se acaba!!!! @VenezuelanVixen somete a Sara McMann en round 3! #UFC257 #InAbuDhabi @visitabudhabi #UFCEnVivo pic.twitter.com/lrEGlvSE1u

— ufcespanol (@UFCEspanol) January 24, 2021

Julianna Pena was quite proud of her ability to battle through adversity against Sara McMann at UFC 257.

“The Venezuelan Vixen” spent the majority of the first round on her back and was taken down again in Round 2, but Pena was able to stay active from her back with submissions before returning to her feet, where she attacked the Olympic silver medalist with knees and punches. That momentum carried into the final stanza, as Pena landed a takedown of her own, transitioned to McMann’s back and secured a rear-naked choke submission at the 3:39 mark.

“The most important thing is to keep moving and keep the fight going no matter what. Never be in a stalemate position, never be flat on your back,” Pena said. “Always keep the fight going and focus in every position …

Bellator two-division champion Patricio Freire believes that former foe Michael Chandler will capture the UFC lightweight crown.

Shortly after Chandler’s impressive Octagon debut against Dan Hooker at UFC 257, Dana White stated that the ex-Bellator title holder could be in line for a shot at the vacant 155-pound belt against Dustin Poirier. Freire, who stopped Chandler in 61 seconds at Bellator 221 in May 2019 to claim lightweight gold, shared his impressions of Chandler vs. Hooker.

"Hooker did everything wrong,” Freire told Sherdog.com. “Chandler is a very explosive fighter. If you walk backwards like [Hooker] did, you will allow him to land his heavy hands. Chandler feinted a jab and caught him with a cross — something he has done his entire career.”

Freire is confident that Chandler will fare quite well against Poirier if the two lightweights square off in the Octagon.

"Poirier proved in that second fight against [Conor] McGregor that besides evolving h…

Conor McGregor’s return to action brought yet another pay-per-view bonanza for the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

According to a report from the Sports Business Journal, UFC 257 sold 1.2 million pay-per-view buys in the United States and another 400,000 internationally. The UFC does not officially release pay-per-view buy rates.

UFC 257 took place at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on Jan. 23 and saw Dustin Poirier knock out McGregor in the second-round of the evening’s lightweight main event. It was a rematch of a 2014 bout won by McGregor via first-round TKO. The pay-per-view aired via ESPN+ in the United States. ESPN will reportedly issue partial refunds to those who experienced streaming problems after purchasing the event.

When final figures are compiled, UFC 257 could end up as the promotion’s No. 2 selling event of all time. McGregor’s fourth-round submission loss to Khabib Nurmagomeodv, which drew a reported 2.4 million buys in October 2018, is No. 1, whil…

Credit: Gleidson Venga/Sherdog.com Credit: Gleidson Venga/Sherdog.com Credit: Gleidson Venga/Sherdog.com Credit: Gleidson Venga/Sherdog.com

Darren Till and Marvin Vettori are expected to square off in the headliner of an Ultimate Fighting Championship event on April 10.

ESPN was first to report the middleweight booking. Till and Vettori have verbally agreed to the contest, but contracts have not yet been signed. A location for the UFC card has not been announced.

A former welterweight title challenger, Till is 1-1 since moving up to 185 pounds. After taking a split decision against Kelvin Gastelum in his middleweight debut at UFC 244, “The Gorilla” dropped a closely-contested five-round verdict to former champion Robert Whittaker in the UFC on ESPN 14 headliner this past July. Till was supposed to face Jack Hermansson on Dec. 5 but was forced to withdraw from the bout due to injury.

An emerging star in the middleweight division, Vettori has won four consecutiv…

Its cute that Jake thinks he is a real fighter, Im gonna beat him up April 17 https://t.co/XcsJ8WhmR3

— Funky (@Benaskren) January 26, 2021

Retired mixed martial artist Ben Askren is making his return to combat sports to face YouTube star Jake Paul in a professional boxing bout on April 17.

Both Askren and Paul announced the matchup on social media following an initial report from ESPN. A weight class for the bout, which will take place under the Triller Fight Club banner, has not been determined. The combatants will fight in a 20-by-20 ring and wear 10-ounce gloves. The event will air on pay-per-view, but a location has not been finalized.

Askren retired from mixed martial arts in November 2019 to have hip replacement surgery and underwent a successful procedure this past August. The 36-year-old known as “Funky” ended his MMA tenure after back-to-back losses to Jorge Masvidal and Demian Maia in the UFC. A two-time NCAA wrestling champio…

Its cute that Jake thinks he is a real fighter, Im gonna beat him up April 17 https://t.co/XcsJ8WhmR3

— Funky (@Benaskren) January 26, 2021

Retired mixed martial artist Ben Askren is making his return to combat sports to face YouTube star Jake Paul in a professional boxing bout on April 17.

Both Askren and Paul announced the matchup on social media following an initial report from ESPN. A weight class for the bout, which will take place under the Triller Fight Club banner, has not been determined. The combatants will fight in a 20-by-20 ring and wear 10-ounce gloves. The event will air on pay-per-view, but a location has not been finalized.

Askren retired from mixed martial arts in November 2019 to have hip replacement surgery and underwent a successful procedure this past August. The 36-year-old known as “Funky” ended his MMA tenure after back-to-back losses to Jorge Masvidal and Demian Maia in the UFC. A two-time NCAA wrestling champio…

When your head is turning purple, you know the tap is coming soon! #LFA95 pic.twitter.com/wbSWMGYrJ4

— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) November 21, 2020

A flyweight championship tilt between Victor Altamirano and Carlos do Carmo Motta will serve as the headliner for Legacy Fighting Alliance’s centennial event on Feb. 19.

The promotion announced the card on Tuesday. LFA 100 takes place at Hartman Arena in Park City, Kansas, and also includes a middleweight tournament semifinal between Anthony Adams and Gregory Rodrigues. The card will stream on UFC Fight Pass at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT, and a limited amount of fans will be allowed to attend. The winner of Altamirano vs. Motta will become LFA’s seventh 125-pound champion, the last four of which are currently in the UFC.

The 30-year-old Altamirano enters the matchup on the strength of back-to-back wins over Chris Ocon and Lloyd McKinney in 2020. He owns an 8-1 career mark, with all of his triumph…

Conor McGregor might not be able to make as quick a turnaround as he might like following his UFC 257 loss to Dustin Poirier.

McGregor is facing a 180-day medical suspension unless he is cleared by a right tibia/fibula X-ray. At a minimum, the former two-division champion is suspended 45 days with 30 days of no contact. The UFC released a full list of medical suspensions from the event to mixedmartialarts.com on Monday.

UFC 257 took place on Saturday at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi and saw Poirier knock out McGregor 2:32 into the second round of their headlining lightweight rematch. Poirier, like everyone on the card, received a mandatory seven-day medical suspension.

Two other competitors from UFC 257 are facing potential 180-day terms pending medical clearance: Andrew Sanchez (nose, tibia/fibula) and Matt Frevola (right hand).

UFC 257 Medical Suspensions:

Conor McGregor: 180 days or cleared by right tibia/fibula X-ray; minimum 45 days with 30 days n…

BJ Penn clearly drunk as he’s arrested. I hope he receives the assistance he needs... pic.twitter.com/5Idv7tXSl7

— Michael Morgan (@mikewhoatv) January 25, 2021

B.J. Penn had another run-in with the law this past weekend.

According to a report from MMAFighting.com, the UFC Hall of Famer was arrested on suspicion of DUI in Honokaa, Hawaii, after police received a reckless driving complaint. Penn was eventually released after an investigation, but his blood-alcohol level was not provided.

Additionally, video of what appears to be a belligerent Penn being guided into a police car surfaced on Monday.

Later, the Hawaii Police Department released further details regarding the incident. The statement regarding Penn is as follows:

Jay Penn of Hilo, also known as BJ Penn, was arrested Saturday, January 23, 2021, for operating a vehicle under the influence of intoxicants.

About 4:51 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, Hawai‘i Police Depar…

In the aftermath of his loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 257, Conor McGregor didn’t waste much time before mentioning the possibility of a trilogy.

According to his coach, John Kavanagh, the Irish superstar wants the stakes raised: Ideally, a third meeting between the two lightweights would be for the vacant 155-pound belt.

“That’s the big drive,” Kavanagh told ESPN. “It’s 1-1, they’re right up there in the rankings, they’re very popular fighters. I think the two of them are a beautiful matchup. Stylistically, it’s beautiful to watch. I’d love to see lots and lots of rounds between the two of them.

“Dustin is obviously riding high with confidence now with more experience and more weight. He took some of those shots. I’m sure his confidence is super high at the moment. We have to fix that technique with the leg and a couple of other things, as well, but Dustin vs. Conor 3 for the belt in maybe May, that would be amazing.”

McGregor defeated Poirier via first-…