LAS VEGAS – Jake Hadley thinks cultural differences are what led to the UFC staff being upset with his behavior. According to UFC president Dana White, Hadley (8-0) wasn’t very friendly and didn’t leave the best impression on everyone, including the matchmakers, who weren’t keen on signing him after he submitted Mitch Raposo at Dana
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10:56 PM ET The UFC has released fighter Luis Pena following two arrests related to domestic violence since June. In a statement provided to ESPN through a spokesperson, the UFC said it is aware of the “disturbing allegations” regarding Pena’s arrest Saturday on two charges of battery and thinks that Pena’s personal and legal issues
Former two-division UFC champion Daniel Cormier believed Leon Edwards should have waited for a welterweight title shot instead of agreeing to fight Jorge Masvidal. Edwards was last in action at UFC 263 in June. Against Nate Diaz, “Rocky” extended his unbeaten streak to 10 with a unanimous decision win. Despite a late surge from the
Welcome to Midnight Mania! Domestic violence allegations have been on the front page of MMA news far too often in the last few weeks. Obviously, it’s always wise to think carefully before jumping to conclusions, but having a pair of UFC Hall of Famers arrested for domestic violence charges within weeks of one another, well,
By Matthew Wells | October 12, 2021 11:31 pm ET Follow @mrmwells The UFC has parted ways with lightweight fighter Luis Pena. On Saturday, Pena was arrested in Deerfield Beach, Fla., on misdemeanor charges of domestic violence and simple battery. He was booked at the Broward County Jail in Fort Lauderdale. Disturbing details about the incident
3:50 PM ET Colorado is shaking up some of its rules for combat sports. The Colorado State Boxing Commission (CSBC) voted Tuesday to adopt open scoring for boxing and MMA bouts, according to director Tony Cummings. Kansas is the only other state to have approved such a regulation. Open scoring allows for everyone – including
Top-ranked middleweight Derek Brunson says he had less-than-ideal training partners in the lead-up to the highly publicized fight between Israel Adesanya. The two middleweights met in 2018. At the time, Brunson was proven in the UFC with plenty of first-round stoppages. However, Adesanya perhaps caught the middleweight at the best time as he was a
A somewhat slapdash episode of Dana White’s “Contender Series” graces UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, tonight (Tues., Oct. 12, 2021) to keep its fifth season going on ESPN+. Last week’s installment added another handful of newcomers to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) roster thanks to strong efforts from Mike Malott, Carlos Hernandez, Fernie Garcia,
Manager Ali Abdelaziz thinks Dan Hooker is only stepping in to fight Islam Makhachev for the chance at a big paycheck. Hooker (21-10 MMA, 11-6 UFC) has accepted the call to replace an injured Rafael dos Anjos against Makhachev (20-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) on Oct. 30 at UFC 267 in Abu Dhabi, and with New
12:03 PM ET UFC legend Chuck Liddell was arrested early Monday on a misdemeanor charge of domestic violence. According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Information Bureau (SIB), officers responded to a home in Hidden Hills, California, regarding a domestic disturbance at about midnight Monday morning. After determining there had been a physical altercation, deputies
Unfortunately the return of Luke Rockhold is being delayed. Rockhold has not fought since suffering back-to-back knockout losses to Yoel Romero and current light heavyweight champ Jan Blachowicz two years ago. After discussing the possibility of retirement, the former middleweight champ decided that he was still interested in fighting, booking a fight with Sean Strickland
Welcome to Midnight Mania! Times have been tough for former UFC Middleweight champion Luke Rockhold, and they don’t seem to be growing any easier. After a single loss at 205 lbs. to eventual champion Jan Blachowicz, Rockhold vowed to return to Middleweight next. He accepted a bout vs. streaking contender Sean Strickland, and right away,
Luke Rockhold won’t be making his return to the octagon at UFC 268. Rockhold (16-5 MMA, 6-4 UFC), a former Strikeforce and UFC middleweight champion, announced on Monday night that he’s sustained a back injury and has withdrawn from his scheduled bout against Sean Strickland (24-3 MMA, 11-3 UFC) on the Nov. 6 card at
4:12 PM ET One of the most infamous backstage scuffles in UFC history will be revisited in December, as UFC welterweights Leon Edwards and Jorge Masvidal have agreed to meet inside the Octagon. Edwards and Masvidal will square off at UFC 269 on Dec. 11, UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell told ESPN on Thursday.
Khabib Nurmagomedov doesn’t believe Dan Hooker offers much of a challenge to Islam Makhachev. Since retiring from fighting, Nurmagomedov keeps busy touring the world and speaking to audiences. These engagements allegedly garner “The Eagle” $300,00 per day if we’re to believe his manager, Ali Abdelaziz. They also give the former lightweight champion a chance to
Dustin Poirier thinks former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champ-champ Daniel Cormier could fill the shoes of UFC President Dana White one day. Poirier, who challenges Charles Oliveira for the UFC Lightweight title at UFC 269, was recently asked who could serve as White’s successor. Poirier suggested that Cormier — an Olympic wrestler and former UFC
We want your predictions for Saturday’s Bellator 268 event in Phoenix. Our staff picks feature includes the consensus picks from MMA Junkie readers. Simply cast your vote for each bout below, and we’ll use the official tallies that are registered by Wednesday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT). Those MMA Junkie reader consensus picks will
2:13 PM ET One top Bellator star will be defending her belt next month. Another will be giving up his title. Bellator president Scott Coker said Wednesday on The MMA Hour that Cris Cyborg will defend her women’s featherweight title against Sinead Kavanagh on Nov. 12 in Hollywood, Florida. Coker also announced that Patricio “Pitbull”