Exclusive MMA Interviews News

Tom Taylor - April 4, 2017

Though Mackenzie Dern came up short on the mats last weekend, giving up a choke to three-time world champion Bia Mesquita in the absolute division of the IBJJF’s Rio Falls event, she remains one of the most talked-about names in the grappling world. Having gone 3-0 in the cage, she’s also emerging as one of the hottest prospects in mixed martial arts. While Dern’s recent focus has been on her Brazilian Jiu Jitsu roots, she is planning on a return to mixed martial arts competition at a to-be-determined date this summer. Contrary to recent statements and reports, however, her return to the cage will likely not mark her debut in the UFC’s Octagon. This news was first reported by BJPenn.com’s Tom Taylor, who spoke to Dern’s manager.

Tom Taylor - April 4, 2017

Cris “Cyborg” Justino, who has owned both the Strikeforce women’s featherweight title and the Invicta featherweight title, has long stood out as one of the best female fighters on the planet. As such, there has been a long-standing and widespread desire to see her test her mettle against the best female fighters in the UFC – particularly against Ronda Rousey, who enjoyed an incredible run of dominance as the UFC women’s bantamweight champion from early 2013 to late 2015. While the desire for a Cyborg vs. Rousey superfight was always present among fans, however, it was never made, as debates over the conditions of the fight – particularly the weight class it would occur in – served as an insurmountable hurdle.

Tom Taylor - April 3, 2017

Last month, in the main event of UFC 209, Stephen Thompson – who fights under the nickname “Wonderboy” – came up short in his second bid to swipe the UFC welterweight title from champion Tyron Woodley. Though he was not without his moments in the fight, he ultimately surrendered a majority decision to the champ. On Monday afternoon, Thompson spoke with BJPenn.com’s own Chris Taylor to update on his recovery, when he hopes to return, and who he’d like to fight when he next steps into the Octagon.

Tom Taylor - April 3, 2017

There is currently no bigger story in the world of combat sports than that of Conor McGregor‘s plans to challenge undefeated boxing great Floyd Mayweather in the boxing ring. While this fight’s fruition is still far from a certainty, many members of the combat sports world are chiming in, giving their opinions on it. The latest to do so is our very own BJ Penn, who shared his thoughts on this possible boxing match in an interview with Chris Taylor. “I would think in a straight boxing match Floyd would have to have the advantage,” Penn said of this possible showdown. “But Connor is younger, bigger, and in his prime, and in combat sports all it takes is one punch. That’s the way I look at it.”

Tom Taylor - March 30, 2017

Back in January, UFC welterweight Jorge Masvidal scored a career-altering knockout win over the streaking Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone. This win sent the American Top Team staple rocketing up the UFC welterweight rankings. In the wake of this win, Masvidal quickly began calling for a fight with top welterweight contender Demian Maia. While Maia initially seemed reluctant to accept this fight, stating that he would prefer to wait for a shot at the title, he eventually signed on the dotted line. The two welterweights will go at it on the main card of UFC 211 this May 13.

Tom Taylor - March 23, 2017

John Kavanagh, who serves as the head coach for UFC stars like Artem Lobov, Gunnar Nelson, and of course, Conor McGregor, is famous for the expression “win or learn.” He even wrote a book with that title. The idea behind this expression is that, when a fighter enters the cage, there are two possible outcomes: they either win, or lose and learn from that loss. In the case of UFC welterweight knockout artist Mike Perry, this expression rings true. Late last year, Perry experienced the first loss of his pro career, losing a hard fought decision to a crafty Alan Jouban. With this first defeat in the rear-view mirror, the welterweight slugger is determined to learn from the experience. The main thing he hopes to learn from this loss his how to win a decision when the knockout fails to materialize.

Tom Taylor - March 23, 2017

Back in August of 2015, former World Series of Fighting strawweight champion Jessica Aguilar made her long-awaited debut in the UFC’s Octagon. Her opponent in this Octagon debut was top ranked contender Claudia Gadelha. Regrettably for Aguilar and her fans, Gadelha came out on top that night, capturing a hard-fought unanimous decision win. Almost two years later, however, the loss still bothers Aguilar, as she was dealing with a fairly serious injury throughout the fight. Given this unfortunate hinderance to her performance, she’s been eager for a rematch with Gadelha ever since.

Tom Taylor - March 23, 2017

On April 22, when the UFC touches down in Nashville, Tennessee, “Platinum” Mike Perry will test his mettle against one of the welterweight division’s most experienced competitors: Jake Ellenberger. On Wednesday’s edition of BJ Penn Radio, Perry weighed in on this looming scrap with Ellenberger. Though he acknowledged that Ellenberger has experience on his side, he doesn’t expect the veteran to give him any new looks.

Tom Taylor - March 23, 2017

On April 22, fan favorite slugger “Platinum” Mike Perry will attempt to rebound from his first professional loss. His opponent in this effort will be brick-fisted welterweight veteran Jake Ellenberger. In advance of this fight, Perry joined host Kinch on BJ Penn Radio to give his take on Ellenberger as an opponent. Apparently, Perry had nothing against his upcoming foe until they appeared together on Chael Sonnen’s You’re Welcome Podcast, where Ellenberger let some trash talk fly.

Tom Taylor - March 23, 2017

Jessica Aguilar is an unheralded pioneer of women’s mixed martial arts. The UFC strawweight contender’s career dates all the way back to 2006 – five years before Ronda Rousey made her pro debut. Over the course of this long career, she has amassed an impressive 19-5 overall record, which happens to be the longest record in the UFC strawweight division. Despite the experiential edge she has over her peers, however, she has struggled to gain a foothold in the division. Aguilar explained this difficulty to host Kinch on the latest episode of BJ Penn Radio.

Tom Taylor - March 21, 2017

Shortly after his competitive UFC 209 loss to reigning welterweight champion Tyron Woodley, we learned that Stephen Thompson had sustained an injury to his MCL. In an interview with BJPENN.COM’s Chris Taylor, Thompson clarified that, while his MCL was indeed injured, it would not require surgery. He would, however, require surgery for an injured meniscus. “It was the MCL, but the doctors said that injury would heal on its own,” Thompson told Taylor. “I have surgery tomorrow on my right knee. It is nothing too serious, just a torn meniscus.”

Chris Taylor - March 20, 2017

Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson suffered a majority decision loss to Tyron Woodley earlier this month at UFC 209 in Las Vegas. The loss marked Thompson’s second unsuccessful attempt to steal the title from Woodley, as the pair had battled to a majority decision draw at UFC 205 this past November in New York.

bjpenndotcom - March 18, 2017

Streaking UFC welterweight prospect Alan Jouban is coming off an impressive unanimous decision win over ‘Platinum’ Mike Perry last year, which extended his win streak to 3 following back to back wins over Brendan O’Reilly and Belal Muhammad. During a recent interview with BJPenn.com, Jouban spoke about a variety of topics, including the highly anticipated return of former UFC welterweight kingpin Georges St-Pierre, who will be returning to the Octagon later this year to fight Michael Bisping for the UFC middleweight championship.

Russell Ess - March 17, 2017

The UFC is going through an interesting time right now. With the debate of sport matchmaking versus the big “money fights,” there is no doubt that the UFC is booking the more lucrative matchups when they feel it is worth it.

Tom Taylor - March 16, 2017

Former UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre has signed a shiny new deal with the UFC, and is poised for a return to the Octagon later this year. His return, however, will not occur in the welterweight division he ruled for so long. Instead, he’ll return to a middleweight title shot against reigning divisional king Michael Bisping. Alan Jouban, who is quickly rising through the ranks at welterweight, thinks he knows why St-Pierre is returning to the Bisping-ruled middleweight division, rather than the welterweight division, which is now ruled by the dangerous Tyron Woodley. He believes that St-Pierre has probably not been training as hard as he says he has been, and that the former champ probably views Bisping as a much simpler puzzle to solve than Woodley.

Tom Taylor - March 16, 2017

The next title fight in the ever-exciting UFC bantamweight division will pit reigning champion Cody Garbrandt against former champion and estranged teammate TJ Dillashaw at a to-be-determined date. Before the two bantamweight stars collide for gold, however, they will star as opposing coaches on the upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter. Garbrandt and Dillashaw’s time on the show, has given their already sizzling beef plenty of time to slow-cook.

Tom Taylor - March 16, 2017

Late last year, featherweight superstar Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino failed a drug test administered by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). Given that Cyborg has had issues with performing enhancers in the past, the MMA community was quick to pick up their torches and pitchforks and accuse her of cheating. In the end, however, Cyborg was granted a retroactive Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) for Spironolactone, the substance in question. As such, she was cleared of any guilt, and will be able to continue to compete as normal. While Cyborg was proven innocent, however, many members of the MMA community still question the legitimacy of her legacy of dominance. In the opinion of Megan Anderson, who holds the Invicta interim featherweight title and stands out as one of Cyborg’s biggest rivals, this isn’t exactly just.

Tom Taylor - March 16, 2017

On April 8, the UFC will touch down in Buffalo, New York with UFC 210. In the card’s main event, we’ll see light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier attempt to defend his title against an old foe in Anthony “Rumble” Johnson. Cormier and Rumble first met back in 2015. On that night, Rumble nearly took Cormier’s head off in the first round, but was ultimately overwhelmed by his foe’s wrestling and cardio, and submitted with a rear-naked choke in the third round. Given Rumble’s incredible punching power, however, the outcome of this fight could well be different. As such, The MMA community seems to be divided when it comes to predictions for this battle.