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Dana White discusses UFC return plans for former champion Ilia Topuria

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Dana White discusses UFC return plans for former champion Ilia Topuria
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UFC boss Dana White has discussed the plans for Ilia Topuria's future return to the cage after his UFC Freedom 250 loss.

When Ilia Topuria fell to a defeat at the hands of Justin Gaethje earlier this year, many questioned just how much it would impact him. It wasn't just that he lost – it's that he took such a beating, he was forced to quit on the stool by his team.

RELATED: Alexander Volkanovski calls for lightweight rematch with Ilia Topuria to ‘test himself' after UFC 333

Still, Ilia Topuria is good enough and powerful enough to still be in the lightweight title conversation. Some even think that he has earned the right to fight for the belt straight away, although that certainly isn't a universal point of view.

In a recent interview, Dana White had the following to say about the return of Ilia Topuria and the lightweight division as a whole.

Dana White discusses Ilia Topuria's return

“In 2027. He'll come back in early 2027,†White said on “The Jim Rome Showâ€. “We're working on that, too. That entire lightweight division, you've got Gaethje, Topuria, Arman Tsarukyan, Oliveira, Paddy Pimblett, Holloway. The whole top 10 is straight killers and the most badass division we have right now.â€

Quotes via MMA Junkie

It's clear for all to see that Topuria is still one of the biggest stars that the Ultimate Fighting Championship has at its disposal right now. The important question, though, is whether or not he can bounce back in a definitive manner. If he can't, then there are plenty of guys at 155 pounds who would be ready and willing to take his place as the next big thing.

What do you expect to see from Topuria in his return to active competition? Let us know your thoughts on this in the comments below, BJPENN Nation!

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM

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MMA

Dan Hooker calls Brian Ortega old while explaining quick UFC return

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12 hours ago

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November 5, 2026

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Dan Hooker calls Brian Ortega 'old' while explaining quick UFC return
Dan
Hooker was frustrated after his last defeat.

The New Zealander faced
Ultimate Fighting Championship debutant Salahdine
Parnasse in the main event of
UFC Paris this past September and lost via technical knockout
at 2:35 of the first round. Hooker is looking to make a quick
turnaround and is now scheduled to fight Brian
Ortega at
UFC Qatar on Nov. 21. “The Hangman†recently opened up about
why he's returning to action just 77 days after his last bout.

Dan Hooker says frustration after his Salahdine Parnasse loss
prompted him to accept Brian Ortega at UFC Qatar

Hooker said he was frustrated he couldn’t show his improvements
after a hard training camp for the Parnasse fight. He claims he
would've taken more time in between fights if he had gone to war
with the Frenchman for five rounds. While Hooker went down with the
body kick from Parnasse in the opening frame, he didn't suffer any
serious injuries, hence the short turnaround.

“When you just get out there and don’t really get to show anything,
that’s frustrating,†Hooker told Ariel Helwani. “I put in a really
hard training camp, made some pretty big improvements in my
consistency and training, and I just didn’t get to show it… Then I
saw Nolan was matched with Moicano, so I called my manager Ash and
said, ‘F*ck, surely I can beat Brian Ortega.' I was like, ‘F*ck,
he’s old as well. Surely, I can beat Brian Ortega.' The UFC liked
that fight, so I got it.â€

While Hooker (24-15) is on a three-fight skid, Ortega (16-5, 1 NC)
has lost four of his last five bouts.

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MMA

Two-time UFC champion ready to end slump after camp change: ‘Best I’ve felt in a very long time’

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14 hours ago

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November 5, 2026

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Two-time UFC champion ready to end slump after camp change: ‘Best I’ve felt in a very long time’

Israel Adesanya feels he's made the best move to get back on the winning track.

It's been over three years since Adesanya last had his hand raised inside the octagon, when he recaptured the UFC middleweight title with a stunning knockout over longtime rival Alex Pereira. Unfortunately for Adesanya, his second championship reign ended without a successful defense as he was upset by Sean Strickland, and then went on to be finished in his next three fights against Dricus du Plessis, Nassourdine Imavov, and Joe Pyfer.

Something had to give, so Adesanya made the decision in July to part ways with the City Kickboxing team in New Zealand, the gym he called home since 2009. Now with a smaller team built specifically for him, Adesanya is booming with confidence ahead of his next fight, rumored to be a meeting with Shara Bullet at UFC Saudi Arabia on Dec. 5.

“Training camp's been awesome,†Adesanya said in a training camp vlog. “This is like a cliché, I guess that everyone says, ‘The best training camp I've ever had,' but I can truly say with my departure from my old gym, CKB, and now building the team that I have and training specifically for me, this is the best I've felt in a very long time. For real.

“I think this is the best training camp—this is the most fun training camp I've had in the last—when was Pereira in New York? 2022? ‘23? This is the most fun training camp I've had in years. That's going to show on fight night. I've been in fight week shape for weeks, my regular fight week shape. I look forward to how I'll look on fight week this time. Holy shit.â€

Adesanya emphasized that his current team is built to focus on his preparation, as opposed to a larger gym like City Kickboxing, which has housed numerous high-level fighters including UFC champions Alexander Volkanovski and Carlos Ulberg, former champion Robert Whittaker, and veteran contenders Dan Hooker and Kai Kara-France.

When Adesanya first announced the split, he called it “bittersweet,†though he didn't elaborate on why he made the change. In his latest vlog, he again hinted at an explanation without explicitly stating a reason.

“I've been doing a lot of thinking,†Adesanya said. “Like, I could have been a better teammate because I could have made better bonds at CKB with certain people who I've trained with for years, and I did make some close bonds, but I feel like I could have been a better teammate in certain aspects. Even though I was a great teammate and I did for a lot for a lot of people, I was there for a lot of people, but I just felt like, you can always do more.

“When I sit back and look at it, I'm like, I hid behind them sometimes and just let the idiot take over. But that's me being self-aware now. I can't say the same for other people, if they can be self-aware and be like, ‘Yep, I f*cked up as a coach' or ‘I f*cked up here, here, here.' … Look in the f*cking mirror and just know what you did and be better. I'm being better now. I have nothing to hide; let's go. I'm glad that I'm here and I can just f*cking own my shit and know I'm going to be better now from all the lessons I learned. All the f*ck-shit I did, all the great shit I did, too. Don't let them ever tell you otherwise or let them tell you, ‘He got too big for his boots.' F*ck off. I know who I am and I'll never let anyone tell me otherwise.â€

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MMA

Tatiana Suarez reveals what she took away from past title fight loss to Zhang Weili

Published

23 hours ago

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November 5, 2026

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Tatiana Suarez reveals what she took away from past title fight loss to Zhang Weili
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UFC star Tatiana Suarez has taken a look back at what she was able to learn from her title loss to Zhang Weili ahead of her return.

In early 2025, Tatiana Suarez fell to her first loss in professional mixed martial arts at the hands of Zhang Weili. Since then, however, she has done a pretty good job of rebuilding herself, with victories over Amanda Lemos and Loopy Godinez.

RELATED: Tatiana Suarez believes she is right back in title conversation after UFC 327

Ahead of her fight against Virna Jandiroba this weekend, Tatiana Suarez has been reflecting on what went down against Zhang Weili. Of course, a loss is always hard to take, but it can often help you become an even better version of yourself.

In an interview, Tatiana Suarez had the following to say on the matter.

Tatiana Suarez reflects on former title fight defeat

“I took a lot from that fight, obviously – um, I guess it's not obvious, because not everybody does that, but I'm sure you have to,†Suarez said. “There's just no way you don't take anything from a loss, you know? For me, it's helped me in a lot of ways mentally. Obviously, it's helped me understand things that I also have to improve on, and more so the mindset of it all. Up until that point, I've never faced any adversity in a fight. So, that was the first time I've ever had to face any type of adversity, and I never stopped coming. I always kept trying, so that's something to be said as well.

“So it does show me that I always just never quit. I'm never just going to be like, ‘OK, I'm done.' She hit me with some good shots, and I just kept coming forward. But I think more importantly, I just feel like being a skilled fighter and having the fight IQ is important when you have big fights like that. So, that's what I definitely learned out there as well is like being smarter and fighting smarter.â€

Quotes via MMA Junkie

Will Suarez compete for a UFC world title again? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, BJPENN Nation!

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM

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