UFC President Dana White went on the record expressing optimism that the megafight between Conor McGregor and Floyd Mayweather will likely be finalized at some point.
Speaking at UFC 210 Saturday, White said he plans to meet with McGregor to work out s…
UFC President Dana White went on the record expressing optimism that the megafight between ConorMcGregor and Floyd Mayweather will likely be finalized at some point.
Speaking at UFC 210 Saturday, White said he plans to meet with McGregor to work out some of the details, per MMAjunkie’s Mike Bohn:
I see this fight happening. Conor wants it, and Floyd wants it. I’ve said many times Conor has done a lot. He’s stepped up for big fights for this company, and for me and for [former UFC CEO] Lorenzo [Fertitta]. I can’t deny him this fight. … Conor is having a baby any day now, and after Conor has his baby, Conor and I are going to meet in New York.
White added preliminary discussions about the fight are underway.
For more news, rumors and related stories about ConorMcGregor and the UFC, check out the UFC stream on Bleacher Report’s app.
Former mixed martial arts fighter War Machine, born Jon Koppenhaver, was found guilty of 29 counts by a Las Vegas jury stemming from the assault of adult film star Christy Mack, Analise Ortiz of KTNV in Las Vegas reported.
The jury was unable to r…
Former mixed martial arts fighter War Machine, born Jon Koppenhaver, was found guilty of 29 counts by a Las Vegas jury stemming from the assault of adult film star Christy Mack, Analise Ortiz of KTNV in Las Vegas reported.
The jury was unable to reach a verdict on charges of attempted murder and attempted murder with a deadly weapon.
According to Antonio Castelan of KSNV, Koppenhaver will be sentenced June 5.
Last Friday, Fox 5’s Adam Herbets shared the list of 34 charges Koppenhaver faced:
Castelan and Faith Jessie reported the jury found him not guilty on charges of “burglary with use of a deadly weapon, sexually motivated coercion, battery with intent to commit sexual assault, and sexual assault with use of a deadly weapon resulting in substantial bodily harm.”
The Las Vegas Review-Journal‘s Michael Quine shared video of the jury reaching their verdicts:
Jacqueline Bluth, the Clark County chief deputy district attorney, said the 35-year-old could potentially receive a life sentence without the possibility of parole at his sentencing hearing, per Herbets.
Mack, whose real name is Christine Mackinday, testified March 8 about the incident. She told jurors of the abuse at the hands of Koppenhaver had occurred over a period of months and on the night of the assault she “genuinely felt [she] was going to die,” per David Ferrara of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Jane McManus of espnW.com wrote Mackinday suffered 18 broken bones, including a fractured rib and broken nose. She also had a ruptured liver that prevented doctors from initially operating on her for fear of putting her under anesthesia.
Brock Lesnar’s mixed martial arts career appears to be over.
A UFC spokesperson on Tuesday told MMA Fighting’s Marc Raimondi the former UFC heavyweight champion informed the company of his retirement.
More to follow.Read…
Brock Lesnar‘s mixed martial arts career appears to be over.
A UFC spokesperson on Tuesday told MMA Fighting’s Marc Raimondi the former UFC heavyweight champion informed the company of his retirement.
Jon Jones may have a nice gift waiting for him when he comes back from his yearlong suspension: a UFC light heavyweight championship fight.
In an interview on the UFC Unfiltered podcast (h/t FoxSports.com’s Damon Martin), UFC President Dana White said …
Jon Jones may have a nice gift waiting for him when he comes back from his yearlong suspension: a UFC light heavyweight championship fight.
In an interview on the UFC Unfiltered podcast (h/t FoxSports.com’s Damon Martin), UFC President Dana White said he expects Jones to face off against the winner of Daniel Cormier’s title defense against Anthony Johnson at UFC 210 on April 8.
“[Jones] is supposed to return around July, so the timing is perfect,” White said. “I haven’t talked to him. I haven’t talked to [Jones] since the whole incident. Depending on where Jon’s head is and where he thinks he is, I would assume he would come right back and try to get his title back.”
In November, the United States Anti-Doping Agency suspended Jones for one year after he tested positive for banned substances. Two estrogen blockers showed up on an out-of-competition drug test from Jones last June.
His suspension began retroactive to July 6, 2016, so he’d be eligible to return to the Octagon this summer.
Jones was set to fight Cormier at UFC 200 on July 9, but UFC removed him from the card following USADA’s notification of his failed drug test. UFC cameras captured the moment White told Cormier of Jones’ infraction (Note: Sequence begins at the 4:13 mark of the video below, and the video contains NSFW language):
Anderson Silva replaced Jones on the card, and Cormier earned a unanimous decision.
White’s stance on Jones appears to have softened in recent months. He told TMZ Sports in November that he wasn’t speaking to the former lightweight champion. Shortly thereafter, he said on the Jim Rome Show (via Martin) that he couldn’t envision Jones in the main event of a pay-per-view anytime soon.
“I would never take the risk of headlining a show with [Jones] again,” White said. “I’d put him on the card, but I wouldn’t headline with him until he can consistently get back on track.”
A rematch between Cormier and Jones in particular would put White’s resolve to the test. Even with Jones out of action for over a year—his last fight was against Ovince Saint Preux last April—fans would be clamoring to see him and Cormier finally face off again.
The UFC added another fight to the UFC 209 card, announcing Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson have agreed in principle to fight on March 4.
“It’s happening,” UFC President Dana White said Thursday, per the Los Angeles Times’ Lance P…
The UFC added another fight to the UFC 209 card, announcing Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson have agreed in principle to fight on March 4.
“It’s happening,” UFC President Dana White said Thursday, per the Los Angeles Times‘ Lance Pugmire. “We haven’t received bout agreements from both guys, but they’ve both verbally agreed.”
Nurmagomedov and Ferguson are ranked first and second in the lightweight division. Pugmire noted the UFC booked a fight between the two since champion Conor McGregor’s immediate future remains uncertain.
After McGregor’s UFC 205 victory over Eddie Alvarez in November, White said he expected the top lightweight to be out of action for 10 months, per FoxSports.com’s Damon Martin.
That would put McGregor’s next fight around September, at which point he’d likely face the winner of Nurmagomedov vs. Ferguson.
In an interview on The MMA Hour on Jan. 2 (h/t MMA Fighting’s Dave Doyle), Nurmagomedov lobbed the first verbal grenade in his upcoming bout with Ferguson: “I want to beat Tony Ferguson, take the interim bulls–t belt, and I will fight with Conor for real belt. This is what I want to make in 2017.”
Nurmagomedov is coming off a submission victory over Michael Johnson at UFC 205, which ran his pro record to 24-0. Ferguson earned a unanimous decision against Rafael dos Anjos on Nov. 5. It was his ninth straight win since losing to Johnson in May 2012.
Nurmagomedov and Ferguson’s clash will be among the most anticipated on a card that is headlined by Tyron Woodley’s welterweight title defense against Stephen Thompson, which is a rematch of their UFC 205 fight that ended in a draw.
The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) notified Cris “Cyborg” Justino of a possible violation stemming from an out-of-competition drug test on Dec. 5, according to MMA Fighting’s Dave Doyle.
The UFC released a statement about the situation Thur…
The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) notified Cris “Cyborg” Justino of a possible violation stemming from an out-of-competition drug test on Dec. 5, according to MMA Fighting’s Dave Doyle.
The UFC released a statement about the situation Thursday, per Doyle:
Under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, there is a full fair legal review process that is afforded to all athletes before any sanctions are imposed. Consistent with all previous potential anti-doping violations, additional information or UFC statements will be provided at the appropriate time as the process moves forward.
Former mixed martial arts fighter War Machine, born Jon Koppenhaver, was found guilty of 29 counts by a Las Vegas jury stemming from the