Exclusive MMA Interviews News

Tom Taylor - August 8, 2019

Colby Covington is expected to get his long-awaited shot at UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman later this year, and he’s already stinging his rival with some venomous trash talk. Speaking on BJPenn.com Radio this week, Covington explained that he has even more distaste for Usman than he did for the former champion Tyron Woodley, who he also campaigned to fight.

Cole Shelton - August 7, 2019

Volkan Oezdemir and Ilir Latifi will finally fight at UFC Uruguay after two previous attempts failed. Back in June, the two were set to fight at UFC Stockholm, but Latifi got hurt and was forced to pull out just days before the fight. The scrap was then re-booked for UFC Newark, but Visa issues from “No Time” postponed that a week to UFC Uruguay, which goes down this Saturday on ESPN+ (learn how to watch here).

Cole Shelton - August 7, 2019

Greg Hardy is now 2-1 inside the Octagon and coming off of a TKO win over Juan Adams at UFC San Antonio. Many thought “The Kraken” would be the one to stop the former NFL star in his tracks, yet that was not the case. Now, after two straight knockout wins, the question of what is next for Hardy is something many people are interested in. He could very well get a ranked opponent next, and according to Dan Lambert, everyone at American Top Team wants that to happen.

Tom Taylor - August 7, 2019

Valentina Shevchenko, the reigning UFC flyweight champion, has battled UFC bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes twice before. Both times the pair fought, Shevchenko came up short via close, competitive decision. Given Nunes and Shevchenko’s dominance in their respective divisions, and their previous history, many fans are interested in seeing them rematch in a champion versus champion super fight.

Cole Shelton - August 6, 2019

Liz Carmouche is the only person to ever finish Valentina Shevchenko, and she expects to do that again. In the main event of UFC Uruguay, Carmouche will rematch Shevchenko for the UFC flyweight belt. The two fought back in 2010, and the American defeated the future UFC champ from Kyrgyzstan by stoppage. Although that was nine years ago, the outcome is still somewhat controversial.

Cole Shelton - August 5, 2019

Joanna Jedrzejczyk has a lot riding on her next fight at strawweight. In the main event of UFC San Francisco, she will take on Michelle Waterson. It will also mark her first fight at 115-pounds since she beat Tecia Torres by decision back in July of 2018.

Cole Shelton - August 2, 2019

Count American Top Team Owner Dan Lambert among those that think Jorge Masvidal should either get Conor McGregor or a welterweight title shot next. For Lambert to see the knockout of Ben Askren in person was surreal. He saw Jorge Masvidal train the flying knee in the gym and heard him tell everyone in the gym that is how the fight would play out. Even though that is how it happened, it was still shocking for the ATT owner and everyone at the gym.

Cole Shelton - August 2, 2019

When Colby Covington beat Rafael dos Anjos at UFC 225 to win the interim welterweight title, the consensus was he would be fighting for the undisputed title next. Yet, that never happened, and after more than a year off, he will return to take on Robbie Lawler in the main event of UFC Newark. This is far from a title shot as Lawler is ranked 11th, but Covington’s manager and American Top Team owner Dan Lambert knows this fight is super important for “Chaos” to win.

Tom Taylor - August 1, 2019

In May, at UFC Ottawa, former Olympic wrestler Arjan Bhullar picked up a decision victory over Juan Adams, extending his win-streak to two-straight and his overall UFC record to 3-1. Several weeks later, the Indian-Canadian heavyweight parted ways with the UFC and signed with Singapore-based promotion ONE Championship. Bhullar, who trains alongside Cain Velasquez and Daniel Cormier at American Kickboxing Academy, is now set to make his ONE Championship debut against former Cage Warriors champion Mauro Cerilli at ONE: Dawn of Heroes on Friday, August 2.

Cole Shelton - July 31, 2019

Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal are best friends and have been for years. The two welterweight contenders always train with each other to help one another for their upcoming fights. But that is no longer the case. At least, not currently. Covington and Masvidal are two of the UFC’s top welterweights, and according to American Top Team owner Dan Lambert, they are no longer training together as they believe they’ll inevitably have to fight each other.

Cole Shelton - July 30, 2019

Amanda Nunes is the reigning bantamweight and featherweight champion and is fresh off of a knockout win over Holly Holm at UFC 239. Now, Amanda Nunes is hoping to defend her featherweight title, but it’s hard to say who she’ll fight. Cris Cyborg could soon be a free agent, and other than that, there are no real contenders on win-streaks available for Nunes.

Cole Shelton - July 30, 2019

Felicia Spencer is not dwelling on her loss to Cris Cyborg at UFC 240. Although the Canadian lost the fight by unanimous decision she knows she had plenty of success. She cut Cyborg’s forehead, and took the Brazilian’s hardest shots and kept moving forward. All in all, she is happy with some parts of her performance but knows she could have done better.

Tom Taylor - July 29, 2019

Dave Leduc walks into Arts Martiaux Patenaude in Gatineau, Quebec like any other student might: quietly, with a bag slung over his shoulder, and a few minutes late. In fact, were it not for his size and his interesting tattoos, he might not warrant a second glance. Yet contrary to appearances, this Quebecer is a member of the martial arts pantheon; a fighting titan; a hero in a sport from half a world away. He is the King of Lethwei.

Cole Shelton - July 26, 2019

Geoff Neal did not expect to wait this long in between fights, but he is excited with the way things worked out. The Texan will now fight on the main card of UFC 240 against Niko Price in a fight that promises to deliver. “It is really cool. Everyone knows it will be a really fun fight,” Neal said to BJPENN.com. “This is the type of fight that I like to see, so I know fans will love to see. Just a great matchup.”

Cole Shelton - July 25, 2019

In the main event of UFC 240, Frankie Edgar has the chance to become a two-division UFC champion. “The Answer” already held the lightweight title from 2010-2012. Since then, the 37-year-old has dropped down to featherweight, and has been chasing gold in the division ever since. At 145 pounds, Edgar has previously fought for the undisputed title and the interim title, both times against the former champ Jose Aldo, and both times losing by decision. Now, he has a chance to capture the belt once again, this time against reigning champ Max Holloway.

Cole Shelton - July 25, 2019

In the main event of UFC 240, Max Holloway is looking to defend his featherweight title when he takes on the former lightweight champion, Frankie Edgar. Heading into this fight, the featherweight champion is a -400 favorite, while “The Answer” is a +300 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions. As the odds suggest, most are leaning towards Holloway.

Cole Shelton - July 23, 2019

Krzysztof Jotko is looking to build a winning streak on Saturday against Marc-Andre Barriault on the main card of UFC 240. The Polish fighter is coming off of a decision win over Alen Amedovski in April. This victory snapped a three-fight losing streak, as he has recently lost to David Branch, Uriah Hall, and Brad Tavares.

Cole Shelton - July 22, 2019

Frankie Edgar will soon get his long-awaited title shot against UFC featherweight champ Max Holloway. The two have been matched up at UFC 218 and UFC 222 but injuries nixed their matchup on both occasions. At UFC 240, however, the former lightweight champion Edgar is set to take on Holloway in the main event.