Exclusive MMA Interviews News

Cole Shelton - April 5, 2019

Johnny Walker has been on a roll. Since his first UFC fight back in November, the massive Brazilian has earned three wins, all by first-round knockout. His total Octagon time is at just 2:48. There is no question that Walker posses a unique skillset that not many light heavyweight have, or can figure out.

Thomas Taylor - April 4, 2019

The first time Isaac Vallie-Flagg climbed through the ropes to compete in a bare knuckle fight, he didn’t end up getting paid for his work. WBKFF, the promotion he fought for, disintegrated almost immediately after its first event, and Tom Stankiewicz, the man behind it, wound up in jail after failing to pay the majority of the fighters he’d hired.

Mike Pendleton - April 4, 2019

Leon Edwards wants to fight Jorge Masvidal in the near future, but feels that the UFC ranking system is keeping it from happening right away. While Leon Edwards continues to climb in the welterweight ladder and improve his already impressive winning streak, his place in the rankings doesn’t reflect that, and he’s being vocal about his displeasure. In an interview with BJPenn.com, Edwards discussed his issue with the ranking system and how he feels that the UFC is trending towards a WWE style of entertainment over sport.

Cole Shelton - April 4, 2019

When Conor McGregor made his return to the Octagon at UFC 229 to take on Khabib Nurmagomedov it was the biggest pay-per-view in the UFC’s history. Part of the reason the card was so successful was because of McGregor and Nurmagomedov’s heated rivalry. First, it was the Nurmagomedov confronting McGregor’s friend and teammate in Artem Lobov. Then, it was McGregor throwing the dolly at the bus. And, finally, after the fight there was a post-fight melee to top it all off.

Mike Pendleton - April 3, 2019

Coming off their respective wins at UFC London, Leon Edwards and Jorge Masvidal set themselves up for a potential fight. Although they could have just met in the cage, the two instead met backstage following their wins, and an altercation took place that saw Masvidal get his hands on Edwards, who is now looking for revenge. With the dust from their altercation settling, the UFC decided to move past the new rivalry and have been in talks to schedule a fight between Masvidal and Ben Askren this summer. While the UFC has made it clear they don’t have any current plans for Masvidal and Edwards to face each other, “Rocky” isn’t going to stop pursuing the fight.

Mike Straus - April 3, 2019

Fresh off his most impressive victory to date over the weekend, Sweden’s Jack Hermansson says he is ready to get right back to work. Hermansson made quick work of David Branch in the co-main event of UFC Philadelphia on Saturday night. “The Joker” needed only 49 seconds to submit the Renzo Gracie black belt with a brutal guillotine choke.

Cole Shelton - March 31, 2019

The future of the UFC’s flyweight division is murky. It was previously reported that the division was going to close down at the end of 2018. However, that was not the case. Rather, the division stayed on, and headlining the first card of 2019 was a flyweight title fight. Although the fight was considered a ‘superfight’ given TJ Dillashaw was moving down in weight to take on Henry Cejudo.

Tom Taylor - March 29, 2019

Anthony Engelen wrapped up the year 2018 in incredible style, picking up a pair of first-round victories in the span of two weeks in November. Unfortunately, this incredible success didn’t carry into the first phases of 2019, as he lost his first bout of the year, succumbing to a storm of strikes from Won Il Kwon in Jakarta in January. With some time between himself and this tough setback, Engelen admits that he wasn’t as focused as he should have been heading into the matchup.

Cole Shelton - March 28, 2019

The UFC is heading back to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for UFC on ESPN 2 this weekend. In the main event, Edson Barboza will be taking on Justin Gaethje in a matchup that has Fight of the Year written all over it. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions. Here’s what they had to say.

Tom Taylor - March 28, 2019

Yuya Wakamatsu is being counted out by almost everybody as he prepares to battle former UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson this Sunday at ONE: A New Era in Tokyo, Japan. However, the 24-year-old Japanese fighter feels that he has some crucial advantages heading into this matchup with the MMA legend. One such advantage is his size.

Cole Shelton - March 28, 2019

The UFC’s lightweight division will hopefully get a little more organized come UFC 236. In the main event, featherweight champion Max Holloway will move up in weight to take on Dustin Poirier for the interim lightweight championship. However, some fans aren’t thrilled about this matchup, as they thought Tony Ferguson or another lightweight contender deserved the opportunity to fight for gold. American Top Team owner Dan Lambert is not one of those people.

Tom Taylor - March 28, 2019

ONE Championship Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong recently had a meeting with former UFC middleweight and welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre in Singapore. Given Sityodtong’s recent habit of signing high profile mixed martial artists to ONE Championship, some members of the combat sports world speculated that he could be working on a deal with St-Pierre.

Mike Pendleton - March 27, 2019

If the UFC is preparing to make a bantamweight title fight between Marlon Moraes and flyweight champion Henry Cejudo as Dana White said they were, Aljamain Sterling will be looking for an opponent, and Pedro Munhoz might be the one. Munhoz most recently defeated former champion Cody Garbrandt at UFC 235 and finds himself on a three-fight winning streak, the same as Aljamain Sterling. With a potential title fight between Cejudo and Moraes possibly in the works, a matchup between Sterling and Munhoz makes sense for both sides.

Cole Shelton - March 27, 2019

At UFC 235, Tyron Woodley was put his title on the line when he took on Kamaru Usman, not Colby Covington like many expected. Ultimately, Usman dominated Woodley from bell to bell to become the new welterweight champion. Now, Colby Covington will apparently be getting the first crack at Usman. The two have had a feud going on for a while now and ‘Chaos’ believes Usman is actually an easier matchup than Woodley is.

Mike Pendleton - March 26, 2019

The recent news of TJ Dillashaw relinquishing his title due to an adverse finding in his drug test after his fight against flyweight champion Henry Cejudo sent a shockwave through the MMA world. Dillashaw faced Cejudo in attempt to become a two-weight world champion in a time where the future of the flyweight division was up in the air. Henry Cejudo put a halt to the plans of Dillashaw and the UFC potentially shutting down the flyweight division when he defeated Dillashaw in a quick first-round TKO. Now that Dillashaw has relinquished his title and left the bantamweight division and title up for grabs, many fighters of the bantamweight division are speaking up for their chance to get the vacant belt.

Tom Taylor - March 26, 2019

Earlier this year, Artem Lobov requested his release from the UFC. Despite his popularity among fans, his request was obliged, and he entered a period of free agency. Lobov’s free agency didn’t last long, as he was promptly scooped up by the upstart Bare Knuckle Fighting Federation (BKFC).

Tom Taylor - March 26, 2019

Artem Lobov will soon make his debut as a bare knuckle fighter, as he’s scheduled for a gloveless fight with fellow UFC veteran Jason Knight at BKFC 5 on April 6. Ahead of this debut, Lobov has not made any secret of his confidence. He expects to accomplish big things under the BKFC banner.

Cole Shelton - March 25, 2019

Colby Covington and Jon Jones have not gotten along of late, but the two UFC stars used to be roommates in college. And while Covington has made some pretty incendiary comments about Jones over the last few years, he’s now hoping to squash the beef and repair their relationship. Covington was actually hoping to get a chance to talk to Jones face-to-face and hash out their differences at UFC 235.