Exclusive MMA Interviews News

Mike Pendleton - February 14, 2019

When you start your professional MMA career with two incredible first-round victories, it’s hard to imagine how things could get any more impressive. Yet for Connecticut’s Mike Kimbel, who earned a highlight-reel slam finish in his first fight and a six-second knockout in his second, things are just getting started. Kimbel has had both of his professional fights come under the Bellator banner in his home state of Connecticut, and his third will be no different.

Cole Shelton - February 13, 2019

All the hype surrounding Bellator 216 is about Michael Page vs Paul Daley, and rightfully so. However, another name getting attention is Valerie Loureda, who is set to make her Bellator debut against Colby Fletcher. Loureda, who is just 20-years-old comes from a Taekwondo background and was a big signing for Bellator when it was announced. For Loureda, it was an easy decision to sign with Bellator and continue her MMA journey there.

Mike Pendleton - February 11, 2019

Ahead of his upcoming Bellator debut, Austin Vanderford wanted to get one simple thing out of the way early, he’s going on without a nickname. Previously known in his fighting career as ‘AK-47’ and then also known to many as ‘Mr. VanZant’ due to his recent marriage to UFC flyweight Paige VanZant, Vanderford made it clear, there are no nicknames attached to him, he’s simply just Austin Vanderford.

Drake Riggs - February 11, 2019

As not all heroes wear capes, not all heroes are perfect, but they don’t always have to be. In the grueling world of combat sports and as is the case with every sport at the highest professional level, the magnitude of each and every setting gets magnified to the broadest possible audience with the more and more success that is gained.

Cole Shelton - February 9, 2019

Arguably the best gym in the sport of MMA is American Top Team (ATT). The gym is the home of Joanna Jedrzejczyk, Colby Covington, Amanda Nunes, Dustin Poirier, Nina Ansaroff, and countless other champions and top contenders. When Dan Lambert first started the gym, he didn’t think it would get as big as it has. He didn’t expect to become a top-level MMA manager either.

Cole Shelton - February 8, 2019

Justin Frazier’s cinderella story appears to have struck midnight. Frazier was on The Ulitmate Fighter 28 in which he was the last overall pick as a heavyweight. Despite having appeared out of shape during his entrance on the show, one thing we quickly found out was that he could indeed fight.

Cole Shelton - February 7, 2019

Robert Whittaker is set for the first defense of his middleweight title in the main event of UFC 234. Whittaker is riding a nine-fight winning streak, while also being undefeated since he moved up to middleweight. Standing in his way will be first-time title challenger Kelvin Gastelum, who is riding a two-fight winning streak. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached to several pro fighters to get their predictions. Most believe Whittaker will hear ‘And Still’ but they aren’t counting Gastelum out.

Cole Shelton - February 6, 2019

Ricky Simon is going to have his biggest fight, and his biggest exposure to date at UFC 234. The 26-year-old will be fighting on the main card where he is taking on craft veteran Rani Yahya. Simon is currently riding a seven-fight winning streak and will have the chance to fight a ranked fighter for the first time.

Tom Taylor - February 5, 2019

Isaac Vallie-Flagg was driving across the mesa outside Rio Rancho, New Mexico when the lights of a police cruiser started flickering in his rear-view mirror. The former UFC and Strikeforce fighter was pulled over for driving with tags that didn’t match his vehicle, and minutes later, was arrested for a number of far more serious charges. That was on January 18, 2018. Now, just over a year removed from that fateful day on the mesa, Vallie-Flagg feels as though he might not be alive had he not been arrested, as it was this arrest that drove him to make his latest and hopefully final attempt to stop using heroin, meth, and pretty much anything else he could get his hands on.

Cole Shelton - February 5, 2019

Joanna Jedrzejczyk used to be the UFC strawweight champ, and for a long period of time, it didn’t look like anyone could beat her. However, Rose Namajunas eventually came along and beat Jedrzejczyk in back-to-back fights, putting an end to the Polish star’s reign. Once Jedrzejczyk was no longer the strawweight champion, some fans began to wonder if she might move up to the new UFC women’s flyweight division. At first, she decided to stay at strawweight for her next fight, in which she defeated Tecia Torres by decision. Then, an opportunity came up for Jedrzejczyk to fight for the flyweight title against Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 231. But unfortunately for Jedrzejczyk and her fans, Shevchenko won this fight via unanimous decision.

Cole Shelton - February 4, 2019

Ever since moving up to lightweight in 2015, Dustin Poirier has been unstoppable. He is 8-1 with one no-contest, with the majority of his wins coming by way of stoppage and in main event spots. However, while his resume looks impressive, Poirier has still yet to fight for the UFC lightweight title. Instead, he has had to keep on fighting top contenders, until finally he said he’d only be accepting title fights or money fights henceforth.

Cole Shelton - February 1, 2019

At UFC 235 Tyron Woodley will defend his welterweight title. However, it will not be against Colby Covington, rather he will take on Kamaru Usman. To many, the news was surprising given Covington was the interim welterweight champion and seemed to be next in line. But, according to American Top Team owner Dan Lambert, Covington was skipped because he turned down a fight for possibly another interim title.

Mike Pendleton - January 30, 2019

For Justin Willis, fighting isn’t a sport, it’s not just a paycheck, it’s life and it’s something he was made for. Fighting is in his blood, it’s what he grew up on, and it’s made him exactly who he is today; a rising contender in the UFC’s heavyweight division. Holding a professional record of 8-1 in his career, Willis is coming off a big unanimous decision victory over Mark Hunt in his most recent fight back in December 2018.

Cole Shelton - January 30, 2019

In February of 2018 at UFC on FOX 28, fan favorite welterweight Mike Perry fought Max Griffin. Many expected Perry to beat Griffin, however, that was not the case. Griffin ended up surprising many by defeating Perry by unanimous decision in Perry’s hometown of Orlando. However, since this fight, Perry has gotten the bigger fights, not Griffin.

Cole Shelton - January 30, 2019

Anthony Hernandez has been waiting for this. Hernandez will be making his UFC debut at UFC Fortaleza in just a few days. The undefeated middleweight knew this day would come and now it is rapidly approaching. However, Hernandez should have already made his debut. He was scheduled to fight Markus Perez at UFC 233, but the card ended up getting canceled. Even though the fight was delayed two weeks, it actually helps Hernandez out.

Drake Riggs - January 29, 2019

‘Excitement’. Three syllables and a noun. Everybody loves something that causes them the feeling of excitement. It’s a great emotion, really. The possibilities are endless when it comes to what can trigger it. For many people around the world, a sport can be one of those things.

Cole Shelton - January 28, 2019

UFC Fortaleza is just days away, and the card is looking like a good one. On the card will be former UFC welterweight title challenger, Thiago Alves taking on Max Griffin. For Griffin, this is the kind of fight he wants after losing his last fight to Curtis Millender.

Cole Shelton - January 27, 2019

Renato Moicano is a rising star in the UFC’s featherweight division. He’s been with the UFC since 2014 and has gone 5-1 during that time with his only loss coming against Brian Ortega. Since the loss to Ortega, Moicano defeated Calvin Kattar and Cub Swanson to then become the backup fighter for the UFC 231 main event. Moicano ended up not having to fight as Max Holloway and Ortega both made weight. However, being the backup fighter showed he was the number one contender at featherweight, and he has to prove that when he takes on Jose Aldo at UFC Fortaleza.