Exclusive MMA Interviews News

Tom Taylor - April 20, 2017

To say UFC flyweight Ian McCall has been unlucky of late would be an understatement. Since he last fought in January of 2015, he has been scheduled to fight five separate times, and not one of these scheduled fights has come to fruition. Though several of these cancelled fights have been due to opponent injuries and other issues, many of them can also be attributed to bouts of illness on McCall’s side. Apparently, these bouts of illness are not just random bugs, but part of a larger health problem that seems to be thrown into overdrive by weight cuts.

Tom Taylor - April 20, 2017

Nate Quarry, who is a TUF veteran and former UFC middleweight title challenger, is involved in a class action lawsuit against the UFC, and stands out as one of the promotion’s most outspoken critics. One of the issues that gets the former fighter most fired up is the UFC’s outfitting deal with sports apparel giant Reebok, which pays fighters small sums to wear Reebok clothes in place of the sponsorship deals they would initially pursue themselves. At this stage, it’s been made quite clear that most fighters actually lost money as a result of this deal. According to Quarry, however, it’s worse than most of us can imagine. Quarry tore the UFC-Reebok deal to shreds on the latest episode of BJ Penn Radio.

Tom Taylor - April 19, 2017

Last weekend, in the main event of the UFC’s trip to Kansas City, flyweight champ Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson made a 10th straight defense of his title, submitting BJJ blackbelt Wilson Reis with a third-round armbar. With this win, Johnson reminded the world why he is considered by many members of the MMA community to be the best fighter in the world. Even many of Johnson’s former opponents hold him in this esteem. Ian McCall, who fought Johnson twice, first battling him to a controversial draw, then losing to him by decision, is absolutely of this opinion. He explained his reasoning on the latest episode of BJ Penn Radio. Yes,” McCall said plainly when asked if he considered Johnson the best fighter alive. “Yeah he is, because in my opinion he’s the best at each [facet of MMA].”

Russell Ess - April 19, 2017

Rory MacDonald is set to make his Bellator MMA debut at Bellator 179 in the main event on May 19. The former UFC title challenger will have his hands full as he takes on the knockout specialist Paul Daley at the SSE Arena in London. MacDonald spoke with BJPenn.com’s Chris Taylor on Monday’s episode of Rapid Fire about a few topics including his recent fight schedule.

Tom Taylor - April 19, 2017

This weekend, when the UFC touches down in Nashville, Tennessee, fan favorite lightweight Joe Lauzon will take on Scotland’s Stevie Ray. The bout will mark Lauzon’s 24th fight under the UFC banner – an incredible run that has seen him earn a record 15 performance of the night awards. Ahead of his latest battle, Lauzon joined BJPenn.com’s Chris Taylor to discuss his fighting future, and his inevitable retirement from the sport of mixed martial arts:

Tom Taylor - April 18, 2017

UFC 210 was steeped in controversy, as Pearl Gonzales was very nearly forced out of her fight with Cynthia Calvillo for having breast implants, and Daniel Cormier appeared to push down on his towel to make weight for his light heavyweight title fight with Anthony  “Rumble” Johnson. Of all the controversies attached to this card, however, none were quite as confusing as the one that occurred in the co-main event. In this co-main event, which pitted Gegard Mousasi against Chris Weidman, Mousasi seemed to land an illegal knee in the second round. The referee then paused the fight, while various doctors and other officials milled about the Octagon in confused chaos. For a moment, it looked as though the knees would be deemed illegal, which could have meant a Mousasi point deduction or even a Weidman disqualification win. In the end, however, a largely unknown policy called “referee polling” revealed that the knees were legal, which meant the dazed Weidman lost by TKO.

Chris Taylor - April 17, 2017

Joe Lauzon: “I love BJ Penn. He is like a dad to me. He shaped me as a fighter.” UFC lightweight Joe Lauzon is arguably one of the most exciting fighters in mixed martial arts history.

Chris Taylor - April 17, 2017

Tyron Woodley says his next fight will be in July Current UFC welterweight kingpin Tyron Woodley claims he will be returning to the Octagon this July.

Chris Taylor - April 14, 2017

Yair Rodriguez promises to deliver on his mom’s premonition for UFC 211 fight with Frankie Edgar Surging UFC featherweight contender Yair “El Pantera” Rodriguez will return to the octagon at next month’s UFC 211 pay-per-view event in Dallas, Texas where he will square off with former UFC lightweight champion Frankie “The Answer” Edgar.

Chris Taylor - April 13, 2017

Tyron Woodley: The last time GSP fought someone like me, he crawled into a cave for 3 years Current UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley is targeting UFC 213 on July 8 in Las Vegas for his octagon return.

Tom Taylor - April 13, 2017

The biggest ongoing story in combat sports today surrounds a potential boxing mega-fight between UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor and undefeated boxing great Floyd Mayweather. While this fight is not a done deal just yet, it is the most discussed topic in the game today. The latest member of the combat sports community to give his take on this potential mega-fight – and what it means for MMA and boxing – is fan favorite lightweight Jim Miller. Miller discussed McGregor’s flirtation with the boxing world on the latest episode of BJ Penn Radio.

Tom Taylor - April 13, 2017

Earlier this month, in the main event of Superior Challenge 15 in Sweden, UFC and Ultimate Fighter veteran Dylan Andrews knocked out Papy Abedi with a thunderous, second-round head-kick. It was his second knockout defeat of the Swedish fighter. With this win, Andrews rebounded from a three-fight losing streak, a disappointing release from the UFC, and a hiatus of almost two years. Yet the win was important to the Australia-based Kiwi for another reason. It represented his rekindled love for the sport of MMA – a love that devolved into downright hatred around the time of his UFC release.

Tom Taylor - April 12, 2017

Having defeated Leslie Smith and Lina Lansberg in the UFC’s Octagon in 2016, Cris “Cyborg” Justino is now firmly embedded as a member of the promotion’s roster. As such, she was recently asked to vacate her Invicta featherweight title, which in turn meant that interim featherweight champion Megan Anderson was promoted to undisputed champ. No longer tied to Invicta, Cyborg has recently had her sights set firmly on Germaine De Randamie, who captured the UFC’s inaugural women’s featherweight title with a decision defeat of Holly Holm earlier this year.

Chris Taylor - April 11, 2017

Tyron Woodley targets July return, has two opponents in mind UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley scored a majority decision victory over Stephen Thompson at last month’s UFC 209 event in Las Vegas, thus retaining his 170-pound strap.

Tom Taylor - April 10, 2017

Now 2-0 in the UFC, and firmly embedded as a member of the promotion’s roster, Brazilian star Cris “Cyborg” Justino has vacated the Invicta Fighting Championship featherweight throne. Unfortunately, it’s been almost 10 month since Cyborg’s last fight in the Octagon – a September destruction of Lina Lansberg – and as such, the dangerous fighter is becoming a bit agitated. The reasons for Cyborg’s recent inactivity, of course, are manifold. Part of the reason it’s been so long since we last saw her in the cage is that she needed time to recover from two gruelling cuts to 140 pounds. Another reason for her continued inactivity is that the UFC’s reigning featherweight champion, Germaine De Randamie, is currently sidelined with injuries.

Tom Taylor - April 6, 2017

Rising UFC welterweight Colby Covington has spent the last few weeks campaigning for a fight with former lightweight champion Rafael Dos Anjos, who recently announced his plan to jump up to welterweight. Unfortunately for Covington and his fans, Dos Anjos opted to sign on for a fight with former Strikeforce champ Tarec Saffiedine instead. The two former champs will meet when the UFC touches down in Singapore this June. With Dos Anjos off the table, Covington has instead been pencilled in for a fight with South Korea’s Dong Hyun Kim, which will also occur in Singapore. In the opinion of Covington, this bout is actually a more valuable opportunity than the one he was originally chasing with Dos Anjos.

Tom Taylor - April 6, 2017

Cris “Cyborg” Justino is no longer the Invicta Fighting Championship featherweight queen. Now firmly embedded as a member of the UFC women’s featherweight roster, she was recently asked to give up this title. With this development, Megan Anderson, who previously wore Invicta’s interim featherweight title, was promoted to undisputed champion. Speaking to BJPenn.com’s Tom Taylor, Cyborg recently explained that, while she is no longer directly tied to the Invicta organization, she is excited for a seemingly inevitable showdown with Anderson down the road.

Tom Taylor - April 6, 2017

Riding high on a three-fight win-streak, rising welterweight Colby Covington has been looking for a step up in competition for some time. Unfortunately for him, finding a willing dance partner has proven incredibly difficult. Thankfully, after being turned down by former lightweight champ Rafael Dos Anjos, he’s now been booked for a scrap with Dong Hyun Kim at UFC Fight Night Singapore this June. Finding a willing dance partner, however, was not easy.