MMA, thanks largely to the UFC, has established a strong global fanbase over the past few decades as it attempts to dethrone boxing as the top combat sport. Boxing is undoubtedly the bigger sport at present but MMA is closing the gap and has the potential to move ahead over the next few years. It’s hardly surprising when you consider the dedication and commitment required to become a professional mixed martial artist. Boxing, of course, is an Olympic sport, but MMA consists of six Olympic disciplines and although each fighter isn’t a specialist in all of them, they certainly need to have a fir ..read more

Since the UFC first emerged in 1993, many highly-talented athletes have stepped into the octagon, but who are the greatest to have ever competed? It’s a source of endless debate and if you asked 10 people you’d probably get a different list from each. That’s due to the make-up of the sport with fans often having a preference for certain styles. Whether you’re a striking fan, a jiu-jitsu advocate or an admirer of wrestling, there’s something for everyone on this list. Amanda Nunes – 21-5 Nunes is widely regarded as the greatest woman of all time (GWOAT) and you’ll find few who will be able to m ..read more

There’s one sure way to bolster your fan base in the UFC… get in and out quickly with a showreel knockout. The first ever UFC event took place on November 12, 1993, when the sport was a world away from how it looks now. There were no judges and the two fighters battled it out over unlimited five-minute rounds with victory earned via KO, submission or corner stoppage. Almost 30 years down the track and the format has been fine-tuned but that hasn’t stopped us from seeing some incredible knockouts! As we wait for the first event of 2022 (UFC Vegas 46) on January 15th, now seems like the perfect ..read more

Only one more week until the UFC is up and running events once more! That gives me time to finish up my UFC weight class predictions for 2022. You can read Part 1 of the column right here. In Part 2 I’ll dive into the bantamweight division (which I mistakenly jumped over last column) and then lightweight up to heavyweight. Let’s get it on, c’mon! Bantamweight Current Champ: Aljamain Sterling (Petr Yan – interim) End of 2022 Champ: Petr Yan I must have jumped over bantamweight last time around because it’s pretty cut and dry. Petr Yan is the best fighter at 135 pounds, and he’ll be coronated (o ..read more

As we prepare to turn our calendars to 2022, bidding 2021 farewell (surely next year will be better than this one, right?!), and with the UFC still in a bit of an “offseason”, I figured I’d boldly predict who will be champion in each of the promotion’s weight classes exactly a year from now. In 2020, all UFC champions retained their titles, which is a pretty rare and crazy feat. However, 2021 saw seven new UFC champions crowned (Francis Ngannou, Glover Teixeira, Charles Oliveira, Aljamain Sterling, Brandon Moreno, Julianna Pena, Rose Namajunas). Will 2022 be like 2022 or 2021? Probably the tru ..read more

With Christmas just a few days away, I’m cutting it close for asking Santa for a present. But I was a very good boy this year, giving all you lovely readers winning UFC picks all year long, so I deserve a present. Actually, make that 11 presents. Here is my list of fights I want to see happen in each of the UFC’s weight classes in 2022. Now it’s in your hands Santa. Women’s Strawweight Rose Namajunas vs Carla Esparza This one appears to actually be happening in 2022. Carla Esparza beat current champ Rose Namajunas in 2014 to become the UFC’s inaugural women’s 115-pound champ. Now she’s worked ..read more

If you’re reading this in the United States – Happy Thanksgiving! If you’re reading it elsewhere – Happy Thursday! The UFC is taking a rare week off for the Thanksgiving holiday in the States, so you’ll get no juicy betting tips from me this go around. However, I figured now would be a fine time to revisit some of the stats I track and use to pick winners for UFC fights. I find it interesting to see what is actually important to predicting a winner of a fight, and what is inconsequential. I did a similar column about a year or so ago, but with far more data in my spreadsheet since that time th ..read more

The UFC has gone from strength to strength over the past decade and Conor McGregor has to take a huge amount of credit for bringing MMA to the masses. 5) UFC 196: McGregor vs Diaz – 1.3million After winning the featherweight title at UFC 194, beating Jose Aldo just 13 seconds into the fight, McGregor was already a star. McGregor was slated to meet Rafael dos Anjos for the lightweight title at UFC 196 but the Brazilian had to withdraw with a broken foot. Nate Diaz stepped in as a late replacement and the American produced a major upset as he landed a first UFC defeat on the Irishman, winning b ..read more

The Coronavirus pandemic devastated the world of sport in 2020, but the UFC was one of the first organisations to battle back into action, putting on a packed schedule of bouts over the course of the year. Yet despite the cream of the crop stepping into the ring over 46 events, no fight managed to outdo the Pay Per View numbers of that between Conor McGregor and ‘the Cowboy’ Donald Cerrone. Just another demonstration of the enduring popularity of the Irish fighter, whose return to the ring in January 2021 topped 1.6 million PPV buys. Calling it Quits? Not Yet… They say that it is the fate of m ..read more

The UFC’s prodigal son is finally set to return home to the octagon. Conor McGregor, who last fought at UFC 246 in January of last year, is scheduled to fight once again at UFC 257 on January 23rd on the mystical, magical UFC Fight Island (aka Flash Forum on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates). This is a big deal, obviously. McGregor doesn’t fight very often (at least inside the cage – he seems to be in constant legal fights involving bad behaviour outside of it), constantly is “retiring”, and constantly is threatening to take another sham boxing match. So, in honour of this monumenta ..read more