Exclusive MMA Interviews News

Mike Heck - January 3, 2020

Claressa Shields is looking to make a lot of history in 2020 — in the boxing ring, and in the world of mixed martial arts. Shields has the opportunity to become a three-division world boxing champion and do so faster than any fighter in history when she faces Ivana Habazin on Jan. 10 for the vacant WBC and WBO 154-pound titles. The event will take place at Ocean Casino Resort in Atlantic City, N.J. and will air on Showtime.

Mike Heck - January 2, 2020

Whether he was your pick for 2019 Fighter of the Year, or at least in your top-3, no one had a bigger surge over that 12-month stretch than Jorge Masvidal. After losing back-to-back fights in 2017, and not competing at all in 2018, “Gamebred” took the UFC by storm with highlight reel knockouts over Darren Till and Ben Askren before headlining UFC 244 against Nate Diaz, and capturing the created “BMF” title. While 2019 was a banner year for Masvidal, the plan is to enhance the momentum even further throughout 2020.

Cole Shelton - December 30, 2019

After Petr Yan beat Urijah Faber at UFC 245, Faber’s teammate, Cody Garbrandt, accosted the Russian backstage. According to Yan, nothing really happened backstage other than Garbrandt being all talk and not backing up his words.

Cole Shelton - December 27, 2019

In the main event of Bellator 237, which goes down in Tokyo, Japan, two Pride legends in Fedor Emelianenko and ‘Rampage’ Jackson square off. Heading into the fight, Emelianenko is a -135 favorite while the former UFC champion is a +105 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. The pros lean towards Fedor Emelianenko but know anything can happen between these two heavyweights.

Alfredo Zullino - December 23, 2019

African mixed martial arts is definitely on the rise. Nigerian-born Kamaru Usman just defended his UFC welterweight title against Colby Covington, and fellow countryman Israel Adesanya unified the middleweight title by defeating Robert Whittaker just two months ago. Now, Italian-Cameroonian Simon Biyong (6-1 MMA) will look to continue that trend of success in his Rizin Fighting Federation debut on New Year’s eve in Tokyo, Japan.

Cole Shelton - December 20, 2019

Petr Yan has been running through the UFC’s bantamweight division and at UFC 245, he was opened the pay-per-view card against Urijah Faber. It was the biggest fight of his career, and the perfect opportunity to make a statement. Ultimately, that is what Yan did. He looked impressive throughout the fight, dropping Faber numerous times with vicious elbows, knees, and punches.

Cole Shelton - December 19, 2019

In the final UFC card of the year and the decade, the Octagon will touch down in Busan, South Korea. The UFC Busan main event pairs short-notice replacement, Frankie Edgar against “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung. Heading into the fight, Edgar is a +145 underdog while Jung is a -175 favorite. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. The majority believe Chan Sung Jung will get his hand raised at home.

Cole Shelton - December 17, 2019

Ilima-Lei MacFarlane is set to defend her Bellator women’s flyweight title at home in Hawaii for the second straight year. She takes on Kate Jackson this Saturday. Last year, she submitted Valerie Letourneau in Hawaii, and it was an emotional night for her. MacFarlane cried during her walkout, and the 29 year old expects to do so again at Bellator 236.

Cole Shelton - December 12, 2019

At UFC 245, Amanda Nunes will look to defend her bantamweight title once again when she takes on Germaine de Randamie. The contest will be a rematch of a 2013 fight, which Nunes won by first-round TKO. Heading into the fight, the Brazilian champion is a -300 favorite while the challenger is a +230 underdog.

Cole Shelton - December 11, 2019

Ilima-Lei MacFarlane is not happy about how the way the UFC released her friend and teammate Liz Carmouche. The two-time UFC title challenger Carmouche was released while she was in Washington D.C. doing promotional work for the company.

Cole Shelton - December 11, 2019

Irene Aldana believes she is part of a No. 1 contender fight with Ketlen Vieira at UFC 245. Vieira, who is ranked No. 2 in the division, has not fought since March of 2018, so Aldana was surprised she was offered this fight.

Cole Shelton - December 11, 2019

In the co-main event of UFC 245, Max Holloway will look to defend his featherweight title against Alexander Volkanovski. Heading into the fight, the Hawaiian champion is a -175 favorite, while the challenger is a +145 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get the predictions for the scrap. This time around, the majority believe Max Holloway’s cardio will be too much for Volkanovski, and that the champ will defend his throne.

Cole Shelton - December 10, 2019

In the main event of UFC 245, Kamaru Usman will look to defend his welterweight title for the first time when he battles his arch rival, Colby Covington. Heading into the fight, the champion is a -185 favorite while “Chaos” is a +150 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. This time around, the pros are split, as the majority believe it will be a close fight where it could go either way.

Cole Shelton - December 10, 2019

Geoff Neal is looking to be the first person to knockout Mike Perry at UFC 245. Although Neal is ranked and undefeated in the UFC, he is taking on an unranked Perry who is also coming off a loss. Yet, the Fortis MMA product doesn’t care as he knows “Platinum” is a big name.

Mike Heck - December 9, 2019

One of the fights fans were looking forward to seeing most on Saturday night at UFC on ESPN 7 was a bantamweight fight between Cody Stamann and Song Yadong. While the fight featured a solid game plan from Stamann against a 2-1 favored opponent in the dangerous Yadong, it was mired in controversy following the reading of the judges score cards. Stamann, along with many members of the MMA community, believed he had done enough to get the nod against Yadong. However, one judge scored it for Stamann, while the others scored it an even 28-28 to lead to a majority draw — the first of two draws on the night.

Cole Shelton - December 9, 2019

Alexander Volkanovski believes he will be the first person to defeat Max Holloway in a title fight at featherweight. Hawaii’s Holloway has looked unstoppable at 145 pounds but when he tried his luck at lightweight, Dustin Poirier appeared to be too powerful a foe. 

Cole Shelton - December 5, 2019

This Saturday, the UFC is back after a two-week break with an exciting card in Washington D.C. The card will be topped by a heavyweight fight between Alistair Overeem and Jairzinho Rozenstruik. Heading into the fight, Overeem is a -120 favorite while the short-notice replacement is a +110 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. The majority believe Alistair Overeem’s experience will be too much for Jairzinho Rozenstruik.

Cole Shelton - December 4, 2019

Yana Kunitskaya is looking to put Aspen Ladd on losing streak for the first time in her career. On the main card of the UFC’s imminent return to Washington D.C., Ladd is returning after the quick 16-second knockout loss to Germaine de Randamie in July. Kunitskaya believes that fight proved Ladd is beatable and she is confident she will make it two losses in a row.