UFC

Johnny Walker is opening up about his personal struggles in the wake of several losses that temporarily derailed his ascenscion to the top of the UFC ... telling TMZ Sports he was "down" after losing 3 of his last 4 fights, but is now ready to mount a comeback!

29-year-old Walker -- the #10 ranked light heavyweight -- is taking on #12 ranked light Jamahal Hill at UFC Fight Night on Saturday ... a matchup Walker believes will catapult him back into title contention.

"Bro, if at any point that somebody said I don't wanna be champion, I'd quit. I'd get out. I'd stop. Because I believe 100% I'm a champion,"

Walked continued ... "I'm not doing this just to fight, just to have fun. I'm here for the money, I'm here for the success, for my career, for my family, for my future. I'm gonna be the champion. I believe that and nobody can tell me opposite."

Walker was once ranked near the very top of the division ... and it felt like a forgone conclusion he'd fight for the title. In fact, we had several conversations with Johnny about his future battle with Jon Jones -- a fight that never materialized.

Aside from Jon leaving the division, Walker hit a rough patch, losing to Corey Anderson in November 2019, before sustaining another L to Nikita Krylov in March 2020. JW then beat Ryan Spann in September 2020 ... before again losing, this time to Thiago Santos in October 2021.

Even before the mini skid ... Walker dealt with adversity, even in victory.

After his electric win over Misha Cirkunov at UFC 235 in March 2019, Walker dislocated his shoulder doing the worm on the Octagon canvas.

"I'm very excited with my career and everything then boom, I was down. I don't know what depression is actually, but I was a little bit down."

Johnny continued ... "I was no patience, I was a little bit sad, I almost lost myself a little bit, you know, and I was against my brother in Thailand, I shouldn't do that."

Despite the struggles, Walker says he's back, and ready to rock.

Cancel Saturday's main event and give Joaquin Buckley the W ... 'cause TMZ Sports has learned viral D.U.S.T. self-defense star, Commander Dale Brown is cornering the UFC star at Fight Night.

And, let's be honest ... he ain't losin' with Commander Brown by his side.

The soon-to-be 14-4 MMA fighter recently hit up Brown -- known for his awesome/viral self-defense videos -- and actually traveled to his Detroit Urban Surviving Training school last month to learn some moves.

FYI, Brown's popularity exploded after Odell Beckham Jr. paid tribute to him during the NFL season ... mimicking one of the commander's moves after scoring a touchdown.

Cleary, it went well ... and when Buckley had an open spot Octagon-side for his fight against Abdul Razak Alhassan, he asked Brown.

"He thought of me as soon as they needed another cornerman," Dale told us when we spoke to him on Thursday.

"Super excited and honored to be chosen by a respected talented pro-MMA fighter that was so impressed by my urban survival tactical training system after he tested it that he wanted me on his team as the first 'survival tactics cornerman.'"

Brown tells us he got his license from the Nevada State Athletic Commission last week ... and is anxious for Buckley to show off some exclusive D.U.S.T moves.

"There are going to be surprise tactics never seen before used in the MMA UFC Octagon," Brown says.

"This collaboration is going to be totally unexpected and these new Detroit survival tactics will be just as unexpected."

That's scary ... Buckley is already electrifying in the cage. In fact, he became an overnight sensation after he executed one of the best head kick KOs ever.

Watch Buckley fight Alhassan -- with Commander Brown looking on -- Saturday afternoon on UFC Fight Night.

Nate Diaz, one of the most badass and beloved fighters in MMA history, tells TMZ Sports he wants to fight Dustin Poirier ASAP -- in what'll be his last fight ever -- before retiring from MMA.

We talked to the 36-year-old superstar from Stockton at Shaq's Fun House party in L.A. Friday night ... and asked Nate, who has 1 fight left on his UFC contract, who he wants to be his final opponent.

"I would like to fight Dustin Poirier. Like now. Like I've been trying to. If there's any mix-up it's him, and them, and the game," Diaz said.

"I want the fight now. What's up Dana White? Let's get this retirement fight cracking so I can get out of this fight game. I'm done with it."

It's bittersweet for Nate fans ... and he's got millions of 'em. A fight with Dustin would be big ... especially since Diaz says it'll be the last of his future Hall of Fame career.

A career where Nate's beaten everyone from Conor McGregor to Anthony Pettis and Donald Cerrone ... all while being one of the most real dudes in sports.

We asked Nate ... how would the fight with DP go down?

"He ain't doing s*** to me. I'll tell ya that much," Nate said.

Bottom line -- Diaz has made it clear he wants to fight Dustin. Now, the ball's in Poirier's court.

As for Nate's future ... even though he won't be fighting, he'll still be around. He's got a successful clothing label, Represent, and his protege, undefeated Nick Maximov is one of the UFC's best prospects.

UFC 271 goes down tomorrow night ... but Joe Rogan won't be behind the mic, TMZ Sports has confirmed.

We're told the world's most famous podcaster has a scheduling conflict leaving him unable to work the fights. Michael Bisping is taking Rogan's place for Saturday's event ... which airs on ESPN+ PPV.

Of course, the JRE host has been under fire for weeks ... starting with supposed "misinformation" spread through his immensely popular podcast. Then, last weekend a compilation video of Joe using the n-word from several years back spread across the Internet.

Rogan apologized ... but also described the situation as a "political hit job."

After the news broke, there was speculation ESPN and/or the UFC pulled Rogan.

However, our ESPN sources tell us that's not true. They say they have nothing to do with the lineup of commentators. As for the UFC, Joe is generally beloved by the company ... and we're told they did NOT pull him.

Bottom line, our sources are telling us Joe had a scheduling conflict ... and it was his decision to miss the fights.

The card's main event features a fight between Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker ... from the Toyota Center in Houston, TX.

UFC star Israel Adesanya is clearly tired of the Joe Rogan criticism -- 'cause the fighter staunchly defended the famous podcaster at a media event Thursday, and he actually used the n-word to cap his point.

Izzy's passionate defense of the UFC commentator came after a reporter asked Dana White during the UFC 271 press conference about all of the controversies that surrounded the comedian recently.

Adesanya wouldn't even let White answer the question -- interjecting almost immediately by saying, "I'm Black, I can take this one."

"I've been in this fight game since 2008," Adesanya said, "and Joe Rogan is one of the nicest, coolest, humble motherf***ers I've had the pleasure of working with. Understand that."

Adesanya continued, "You know what they're trying to do. You can't control the man and he's got the biggest platform in the world right now. So, that's my n***a, Joe Rogan."

FYI, Izzy and Rogan are buddies ... and the UFC champ has been on the JRE podcast in the past.

Rogan has come under fire in the last few weeks due to controversial guests he's had on his podcast and for his previous use of the n-word.

Joe apologized -- and even ripped himself in a stand-up comedy act earlier this month. However, he's also called the push to de-platform him a "political hit job."

Izzy, though, clearly believes Rogan has nothing to be sorry for ... and said his advice to the guy is plain and simple: "F*** the noise."

Julianna Pena is a woman on a mission, out to prove that her victory over GOAT Amanda Nunes in December was no fluke, saying she can't wait to once again prove she's the superior fighter.

The 32-year-old champ tells TMZ Sports she's pumped to step in the Octagon with Nunes for a second time ... after many people were shocked by the outcome of their first fight.

"I'm so excited! I think I'm one of those people that thrives in a situation where people are counting me out," Pena says.

"A ton of people think that was a fluke. They think she was off on that night. I don’t feel that way and I can’t wait to prove the naysayers wrong again."

Of course, Julianna was a huge underdog when she defeated Amanda ... winning by 2nd round submission at UFC 269 in December 2021.

Now, the two will rematch later this year ... in what Dana White said will be the biggest fight in women's history.

But first, Julianna and Amanda will face off as coaches on "The Ultimate Fighter 30" ... where they'll mentor men's heavyweights and women's flyweights.

After TUF ... rematch time!

We also talked to Julianna about "the baddest woman on the planet," Ronda Rousey's return to the wrestling ring (Pena doesn't agree with WWE's description).

The champ weighed in on Ronda's time with the UFC ... and issued this challenge in case she's considering fighting MMA again.

"I've been saying that from the very beginning when the bantamweight division here opened up. They literally just handed a belt to somebody. She had to only fight one person where at the same exact time I had to fight four girls."

She continued ... "If she wants to come back to right real fighting, I would absolutely love to greet her and make that fight happen. It's a dream matchup for me."

Rashad Evans has known Joe Rogan for many years ... and the UFC legend tells TMZ Sports flat out, the JRE host is NOT racist.

"I know Joe and I know the kind of person Joe is," Evans told us ... "Joe never gave me any kind of feeling or any kind of indication that he's racist."

Of course, Rogan's in hot water as pressure mounts for him to be pulled off Spotify in the wake of an old video that resurfaced showing Joe repeatedly using the n-word.

Joe apologized, saying "It looks f***ing horrible, even to me." However, Rogan also explained the video was edited together without context using 12 years of podcast footage.

Rashad says he is not condoning Rogan's use of the n-word, but says the video isn't indicative of who JR is as a person.

"Not to excuse any of it, but at the same time, when you go back that far I'm sure there could be a compilation of unfavorable things that a lot of people have said that can come back and bite them," Evans says.

FYI, Evans and Rogan go back many years (Rashad was signed by the UFC in 2005). RE was a guest on the JRE pod in February 2020.

In addition to Spotify calling for Rogan's firing ... some have also said the UFC should can the commentator. We asked Rashad ... should the UFC ax Joe?

"I think [the UFC] should stand by Joe Rogan. I don't think those allegations and the compilation, I don't think that speaks to who Joe Rogan is now."

Rashad points out, depending on political affiliation, some people are given a pass in situations ... like President Joe Biden.

"Our president is one they gave a pass to," Evans says.

"There are many things I've heard him say that sounded racist. I've heard him use the n-word in context like how Joe used it. That's completely overlooked, and he was considered to be the savior of people of color."

Switching gears ... we also asked 44-year-old Rashad, who recently beat Gabriel Checco by unanimous decision in Khabib's Eagle FC MMA promotion, about his fighting future.

There's a good chance you haven't seen the last of Suga.

Dana White shared some graphic photos of Kamaru Usman's open hand surgery on Monday -- and, WARNING, you better be done with breakfast before clicking on the pics!!

Usman had to head under the knife after he jacked up his hand in a sparring sesh just weeks before he beat Colby Covington at UFC 268 in November -- and the procedure was clearly no cakewalk.

You can see in the photos that White shared -- docs had to open up the top of Usman's right hand with some beefy utensils to repair the damage.

The before and after pics are gruesome -- they show docs cutting into the hand to fix it all up.

Despite the gnarly nature of the injury, White expressed optimism for a quick recovery -- saying in the caption that he'd see Usman "soon."

As for Kamaru, he posted a video from the hospital bed Monday ... clearly showing he ain't going to let the operation hold him back too much.

No official word on when the Nigerian Nightmare will return to action ... but his manager, Ali Abdelaziz, told us recently he'd like to see the fighter take on Leon Edwards next.

"Khamzat is fighting all these little ass guys, but I'd like to fight him next."

That's rising star Nick Maximov talking to TMZ Sports at Planet Hollywood in Vegas hours after his UFC Fight Night win, calling out one of the most feared guys in the UFC ... undefeated 27-year-old, Chechen-born fighter Khamzat Chimaev.

But, it's not just Borz who's never lost ... 'cause Maximov, a Nate Diaz protégé, is a perfect 8-0, and has fought some super tough prospects -- something Nick says Chimaev has NOT done.

"Why are people scared? He hasn't shown anything to be scared about, cause he hasn't fought any wrestlers. He's a wrestler that hasn't fought any wrestlers. So, I'm like, 'what the f**k, fight me then!'"

Speaking of tough fights ... Nick was the co-main event on Saturday, and defeated Puna Soriano by split decision.

"It's my second UFC fight, I'm the co-main event. Second UFC fight, I'm fighting all these top prospects with either zero losses or 1 loss. I'm like, 'why am I fighting all these hard-ass guys?' No one else is doing that. Not Paddy Pimblett. Not Sean O'Malley."

But, Maximov continues to win ... and believes he will be champion inside a year.

We asked ... can you beat Adesanya?

"Easily. I think I can take anyone in the top 5," Maximov says.

Dana White is stepping in a whole new arena -- the UFC Prez tells TMZ Sports his whiskey brand sponsored his very own stock car and is confident in the vehicle, he's prepared to bet $10-25K it'll win its first-ever NASCAR race.

White says Howler Head Whiskey teamed up with Trackhouse Racing -- a professional stock car auto racing team co-owned by Pitbull -- to sponsor a car for this weekend's NASCAR race at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum.

"I'm going to bet anywhere from $10-25,000 on this car," White said. "I don't know what the odds are yet, but I want to win. I love this type of stuff."

Dana tells us the car was brought to Las Vegas from Charlotte -- so he could check out the freshly wrapped car -- before making its final stop in L.A. for Sunday's race.

Check out the ride, the car features a sick exterior design ... with the Howler Head logo on the side.

The UFC boss -- who's a mastermind at promoting -- told us that he got a visit from one of Pitbull's business partners, Justin Marks, and a discussion about the future of their respective sports ... peaked his interest in Nascar.

"I'm into this," Dana said. "I love the idea our fanbase does cross over with NASCAR and the NFL. I love this type of stuff."

White has a fight at the UFC's APEX Center Saturday night ... and is shooting a show on Sunday, so he won't be able to watch the car in person, but you can bet he's going to keep a close eye on the race.

Dana White says he fought like hell to get Tom Brady to play one more year -- and to do it for the Raiders -- telling TMZ Sports, "I was hammering him to come to Vegas."

Dana -- a huge Patriots fan who calls Sin City home -- says the conversations all went down shortly after Brady and the Buccaneers were booted from the playoffs ... and the TB12 retirement talk started to circulate.

The UFC honcho tells us he tried hard to get inside information from Tom about what he was going to do ... and the entire time, he said he was urging the guy to force a trade from Tampa to Nevada.

"I was firing texts to him and he sent very cryptic text messages," White says. "He had me thinking he wasn't going to retire. So, you know what I was doing? I was hammering him to come to Vegas and play for the Raiders."

Tom's initial response was not a "no," Dana said ... but, ultimately, Brady announced Tuesday he wouldn't be a Raider or a Buc or even a football player anymore -- retiring after 22 seasons in the NFL.

Khabib Nurmagomedov is 29-0. BJ Penn is 16-14.

But, it's NOT the undefeated fighter from Dagestan who is the greatest MMA fighter to ever step in a cage, according to 38-year-old former UFC champ Benson Henderson, who tells TMZ Sports Penn is the G.O.A.T.!

"That's easy, hands down BJ. Not even close. You don't even gotta say his full name, just one word. BJ, and you know who it is. The greatest lightweight all-time, without a doubt, hands down BJ Penn."

Of course, BJ and Khabib -- both now retired -- had very different careers.

Penn started his pro career at the highest level ... in the UFC. He fought everyone from Matt Serra (win, 2002), Matt Hughes (win, 2004), Renzo Gracie (win, 2004), Georges St. Pierre (loss, 2006), Diego Sanchez (win, 2009) and Nick Diaz (loss, 2011). BJ had a rough end to his career ... losing his last 7 fights.

As for Nurmagomedov ... he never lost a single fight. But, Khabib didn't come to the UFC until 2012. However, when he got there ... he literally and figurately kicked everyone's ass.

The Eagle's last 6 fights, all dubs, came against Michael Johnson (2016), Edson Barboza (2017), Al Iaquinta (2018), Conor McGregor (2018), Dustin Poirier (2019) and Justin Gaethje (2020). After the scrap with Justin, Nurmagomdeov walked away from the sport.

We said ... a lot of people believe the Eagle is the GOAT.

Benson's response?

"Out of those 29 and 0 Khabib fought, go look up the records of the 29 people he beat and then go look at the records of guys BJ beat. Go look at the records the guys BJ lost to. Go look at where they fought."

No hesitation there ... for his money, Penn is the best.

And, speaking of money ... we also asked Benson -- a Bellator free agent -- about his future career plans. Does he plan to retire? Fight for another organization like Khabib's Eagle FC?

Kamaru Usman may be down to fight Israel Adesanya after all -- that is IF the money's right -- according to manager Ali Abdelaziz, who tells TMZ Sports he wants his fighter to go up a weight class to attain a 2nd UFC title.

"I want him to beat Leon Edwards and I want him to go fight Israel Adesanya for the middleweight title," Abdelaziz said when speaking about his top-ranked pound-for-pound client.

Kamaru, the 170 lb. champ, and Izzy, the 185 lb. champ, have always shut down talks of them fighting ... because they're both Nigerian.

But, Ali doesn't believe that'd stop them if it came down to it.

"These guys, they're cool but I don't think they like best friends. Listen, if there's enough money for both of them, they'll fight in the parking lot. I know how people work. This has nothing to do with loyalty."

Abdelaziz continued, talking about the importance of attaining a title in 2 divisions.

"I like Israel, I love watching him. I'm a huge fan. He's a nice guy, but at the end of the day, I'm Kamaru Usman team all the way. I want to see Kamaru Usman before end of the road have two titles. I'm selfish. I'm greedy. Like Henry Cejudo says, I'm a gold digger."

In fact, Ali says Usman is even considering going up 2-weight classes ... all the way to 205 lbs.

"Kamaru's thinking about going to a light heavyweight and fight Jan Blachowicz, not fight Adesanya."

Of course, Jan lost his last fight to Glover Teixeira and is no longer the champ.

But, the point remains ... Kamaru is considering going up 35 lbs. and fighting a man who's significantly bigger than him -- a fight Abdelaziz believes his guy would win rather easily.

"Styles make fights. Kamaru will beat Jan for five rounds straight."

But first -- before an Israel, Jan, or matchup with anyone else -- the Nigerian Nightmare has to beat Leon Edwards ... who hasn't lost since (you guessed it) he was beaten by Usman in 2015.

UFC champ Julianna Pena believes COVID is "just a money grab" ... admitting this week she's "a massive conspiracy theorist" when it comes to the pandemic.

The starfighter -- who just beat Amanda Nunes to win the women's bantamweight title in a huge upset at UFC 269 -- made the eyebrow-raising comments to Joe Rogan on "The Joe Rogan Experience."

During a talk about coronavirus with the podcast host, Pena said, "I'm a massive conspiracy theorist on this whole thing and I have been since the very beginning."

"And I'm like, 'This is just a money grab,'" she said. "This is -- they're trying to kill us," she added. "You know? And this is ridiculous."

Rogan responded quickly, saying, "Woah."

"I don't think they're trying to kill us," Rogan said. "I think there's a lot of confusion as far as what works and what doesn't work."

It's unclear exactly who either meant by "they" -- but it appears to be government officials.

The two went on to talk about COVID masks... and both Pena and Rogan made it very clear they have doubts about their efficacy.

"Have you seen that guy where he takes a pull from a vape pen, on the outside, and then just like clouds and plumes of smoke come out?" Pena said. "Like, what is [the mask] really protecting?"

Pena added, "I don't put on a mask unless somebody asks me."

Chael Sonnen is still undefeated ... battery charges against the 44-year-old retired MMA star were dismissed in Las Vegas, TMZ Sports has confirmed.

The American Gangster was slapped with 5 battery citations after an alleged brawl at a Las Vegas hotel the night of December 18 ... where Sonnen was accused of roughing up numerous people.

However, a judge in Nevada dismissed all 5 misdemeanor battery charges against Chael on Thursday.

"This matter was dismissed by the court on its own based upon the fact that the citation’s notice to appear failed to comply with the legal requirements as set forth by Nevada law," the Clark County District Attorney told us when we asked for an explanation.

It's important to note, the 5 citations were dismissed "without prejudice" ... meaning the state can refile the charges if they choose.

For his part, Sonnen's been mum ... opting not to address the incident.

Despite laying down his gloves in the Bellator cage back in June 2019, Chael's as popular as ever ... becoming one of the most respected MMA analysts in the world.

As a fighter, Sonnen was one of his era ... beating Rampage Jackson, Wanderlei Silva, Shogun Rua, and Michael Bisping.

Lamar Odom is going back to TV -- the former Lakers star will be joining the cast of "Celebrity Big Brother" this season ... where he'll be competing for a $250,000 cash prize.

The series announced Odom will be a guest for its third season on Thursday ... releasing a video on social media introducing all the celebs who'll be living under the same roof for the competition.

"My name is Lamar Odom [and] people may know me for winning two championships with the LA Lakers," Odom said in his intro.

"They also may know me for marrying Khloe Kardashian. We had our own TV show. Our own reality show."

Odom is no stranger to television -- when he was still married to Khloe, they had their own show, "Khloe & Lamar" ... which was a spinoff of "Keeping Up With the Kardashians."

Speaking of Kardashians ... CBB will have another guest who has a tie to their family. Shanna Moakler -- whose ex-husband, Travis Barker, is engaged to Kourtney Kardashian -- will join Odom in the house.

Other notable guests include UFC star Miesha Tate, NSYNC singer Chris Kirkpatrick, SNL's Chris Kattan and 'Real Housewives of Atlanta' star, Cynthia Bailey.

Lamar made more than $114 million during his NBA career ... but recently opened up about his struggles with money management -- even going to Kobe Bryant to help him get out of a gambling debt.