Author: Dan Hiergesell

Jason Silva-USA TODAY Sports

Despite losing his last seven Octagon appearances, former UFC lightweight and welterweight champion B.J. Penn will stick around for at least one more fight.

According to UFC president Dana White in a recent interview with TSN’s Aaron Bronsteter, “Prodigy” will make his return to the cage later this year against lightweight veteran Nik Lentz. Both sides have verbally agreed to fight at a date and location yet to be determined.

Penn, 40, refuses to walk away from the sport that he once dominated. The aging veteran hasn’t captured victory since a knockout win over Matt Hughes back in 2010, producing a 0-7-1 UFC record over the past nine years. The Hawaiian legend hasn’t been completely blown out since returning from retirement in 2017, as “Prodigy” held his own against fighters like Clay Guida and Dennis Siver, but a quick submission loss to Ryan Hall and a brutal TKO defeat at the hands of Yair Rodriguez leads fight fans to believe the veteran has little left in the tank.

Lentz, 34, is coming off a tough TKO loss to Charles Oliveira this past May in an important trilogy fight. The 10-year UFC veteran has produced some meaningful performances since returning to 155 pounds back in 2015, including stoppages over Gray Maynard and Will Brooks, but “Carny” has resembled a divisional gatekeeper at best during that time. Lentz remains one of the tougher guys in the division and is certainly going to be favored in a matchup with the struggling Penn, but maybe he slips up and allows “Prodigy” one more chance at Octagon glory.

What so you, Maniacs? Does Penn have a chance of defeating Lentz and ending his seven-fight skid?

Stick with Mania for more news on Penn’s return.

Photo By Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile via Getty Images

We still don’t know what’s going to happen with the UFC’s lightweight division and probably won’t for at least a few more months.

Current divisional champion Khabib Nurmagomedov is scheduled to unify his belt with interim titleholder Dustin Poirier at UFC 242 this September. That matchup will certainly produce some clarity at 155 pounds but not entirely. With top draws like Conor McGregor, Tony Ferguson, Justin Gaethje, Donald Cerrone, and even Georges St-Pierre hanging around, the options at lightweight are difficult to wade through.

It’s a nice problem to have but one that comes with a lot of uncertainty. Just ask UFC president and ultimate matchmaker Dana White.

“It’s a very interesting division because you have Khabib, you have Tony Ferguson, Conor McGregor, Donald Cerrone’s in the mix, Justin Gaethje – there’s just so many unbelievable fights in that weight class and Khabib keeps talking about fighting Georges St. Pierre again,” White told Rich Eisen earlier this week. “St-Pierre retired but when St-Pierre retired, he retired basically saying I won’t if I can fight Khabib. So there’s so many different, crazy, interesting things that we can do at that weight class.”

One of the most intriguing and likely scenarios at 155 pounds would be a rematch between Khabib and McGregor. Remember, the undefeated Russian submitted “Notorious” last October in the biggest fight in UFC history. While many people don’t believe McGregor should get a rematch with “Eagle” before winning another fight inside of the Octagon, White believes it’s still a viable option moving forward.

“It would be a massive fight and it’s absolutely possible, yes,” White said. “I think McGregor is gonna come back at the beginning of next year. So, realistically, all these guys are looking at September to see what happens with Khabib and Poirier. After that fight plays out, I think there’s gonna be a lot of movement going on.”

While McGregor has hinted at retirement more than once this year, he still remains active in training and staying in shape for a fight. That is a big reason why White would entertain him getting another crack at Khabib right away.

“To Conor’s credit and defense, you don’t see Conor running around filming movies,” White said. “If you look at his – he’s in great shape, he’s staying in shape, he’s training, and he’s seeing how this thing plays out.”

McGregor staying in shape is all well and good, but White would be booking the rematch with Khabib in order to reap the financial benefits of an all-time great matchup. Can you blame him?

“Any time there’s too much money involved, Rich, bet on it happening,” concluded White.

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) will be back in business tomorrow night (Sat., July 27, 2019) for UFC 240 live on ESPN+ PPV from inside Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, as Max Holloway puts his featherweight strap on the line against UFC veteran and former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar.

In addition to the main event, the legendary Cris Cyborg will make her return to the Octagon when she takes on rising featherweight contender Felicia Spencer in the co-headliner. Promising young talents like Arman Tsarukyan, Viviane Araujo, and Gavin Tucker will also be competing throughout the main card and “Prelims.”

In preparation for this weekend’s event north of the border, the promotion has released the latest and greatest episode of UFC 240 “Embedded,” which can be seen in the above video player. This time around, the action focuses on final media day staredowns, weight-cut preparations, and all the extracurricular activities that fighters like to do during fight week.

From the official YouTube description:

On Episode 5 of UFC 240 Embedded, featherweight champion Max Holloway ignores his appetite as his team eats their feelings with fight night approaching. Featherweight Felicia Spencer meets the press at Ultimate Media Day, where she faces off in person against opponent Cris Cyborg; Holloway also squares up with challenger Frankie Edgar at the event. As weight cuts get underway, Edgar surrounds himself with friends and family. UFC 240 Embedded is an all-access, behind-the-scenes video blog leading up to the featherweight title fight taking place Saturday, July 27 on Pay-Per-View.

To view episode four of UFC 240 “Embedded” click here.

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 240 fight card below, starting with the UFC Fight Pass “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance on ESPN at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+.

Check out the complete UFC 240 fight card here.

Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

The action late last night (Sat., July 20, 2019) at UFC on ESPN 4 live on ESPN from inside AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas, but it was all worth it once the punches started to pile in.

Leading the charge was a main event scrap that saw Leon Edwards win his eight-straight fight at welterweight when he defeated Rafael dos Anjos via unanimous decision (HIGHLIGHTS HERE). In addition to Edwards’ destruction, Walt Harris finished heavyweight counterpart Aleksei Oleinik in just 12 seconds, Greg Hardy cashed in on another main card spot with a 45-second TKO stoppage over Juan Adams, lightweight contender Dan Hooker viciously finished James Vick in the first round, and a sneaky bantamweight matchup between Mario Bautista and Jin Soo Son on the “Prelims” undercard turned into an all-out brawl for 15-straight minutes.

In order to sift through the action and see which fighters took home an extra $50,000, we take a closer look at the official UFC on ESPN 4 bonus winners below:

Fight of the Night: Mario Bautista vs. Jin Soo Son

Performance of the Night: Walt Harris

Performance of the Night: Dan Hooker

For complete UFC San Antonio results and coverage click here.

Photo by Steve Marcus/Getty Images

Manny Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39 KOs) and Keith Thurman (29-1-1 NC, 22 KOs) turned in an instant classic last night (Sat., July 20, 2019) live on FOX PPV from inside MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, but it was Pacquiao who walked away with the split-decision win and the WBA (Super) welterweight championship.

Despite a 40-year-old body holding him together, Pacquiao looked like a spry 25-year-old eager to pick apart his opponent. “Pac-Man” started off quickly by utilizing his speed, footwork, and timing to land a big combination at the end of the first round that planted Thurman on the canvas. Pacquiao would use that momentum to really bust up Thurman over the next four rounds, which put “One Time” on notice entering the second half of this fight.

Thurman, who has fought just once over the past 28 months, started to come into his own in the seventh when he pushed Pacquiao back into the ropes with a hard combination. The welterweight champion followed his efforts up with a one-sided ninth round that pushed the momentum back his way. That was until Pacquiao landed a brutal body shot in the tenth that left Thurman in pain. He somehow survived, but needed a finish in the final frames to salvage this title fight.

Unfortunately for “One Time,” Pacquiao was ready to meet his last-second blitz with offense of his own. The 40-year-old legend landed more shots down the stretch including a nasty uppercut in the 12th round. In the end, it was “Pac-Man” who did enough on the scorecards to win this wild welterweight affair.

Check out the comprehensive highlights below:

For complete ‘Pacquiao vs. Thurman’ results and coverage click here.

Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Leon Edwards continued his welterweight surge last night (Sat., July 20, 2019) at UFC on ESPN 4 live on ESPN from inside AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas, when he outlasted former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos in their main event to earn a unanimous decision win and push his divisional win streak to eight.

Edwards was the one who secured the first takedown of the fight. The Englishman wasn’t able to do much damage as RDA played good defense but he controlled the Brazilian for a few solid minutes in the first round. Dos Aanjos eventually returned to his feet but he was met with a few hard elbows by Edwards to end the frame.

The second round saw Edwards land a nice hook to start. RDA kept busy with body shots along the cage but Edwards seemed too big and powerful to control. Edwards found a home for another elbow that badly cut dos Anjos’ eye, but the former UFC champion returned with hard leg kicks. An eventual kick forced Edwards to the canvas where RDA laid on top and scored good offense.

In Round 3, RDA opened up with a stiff jab. He then followed that up with more leg kicks as Edwards slowly defended. Dos Anjos’ eye kept bleeding as Edwards landed return offense in bunches, but RDA hung in tough and made the Englishman work. Edwards landed more punches to start the fourth round as he pieced together some crisp combos. RDA returned with a heavy body kick but “Rocky” didn’t seem to budge. The Brazilian kept plodding forward but Edwards was elusive with his footwork and head movement. Dos Anjos tried to mix it up with a flying knee late in the round only to have Edwards defend and secure clinch control to end the round.

The fifth and final round saw a desperate RDA throw with just a little more power. Edwards was still able to control the chaos and landed some sharp punches from the outside. “Rocky” then closed the gap and worked a good clinch against RDA along the cage, gaining a brief takedown in the process. In the end, the round went to Edwards and so did the fight, as the surging welterweight contender walked away with a unanimous decision win.

Check out the full fight highlights below courtesy of UFC/ESPN.

For complete UFC San Antonio results and coverage click here.