Exclusive MMA Interviews News
Adrian Yanez says he's "not happy" with his TKO win performance against Randy Costa, hopes a top-15 opponent is next
Cole Shelton - July 28, 2021
Adrian Yanez wasn’t happy with his TKO win over Randy Costa at UFC Vegas 32. Yanez and Costa opened up the main card in a highly-anticipated bout between two of the brightest prospects at bantamweight. In the first round, it appeared Costa would be the one getting his hand raised as he was jabbing Yanez and landing heavy shots. For the Texan, he says the way Costa fought the first round threw him off.
Maycee Barber explains why she called out "legend" Jessica Eye after beating Miranda Maverick
Cole Shelton - July 28, 2021
Maycee Barber has never been shy to call out her next opponent and that is exactly what happened after her win at UFC Vegas 32 on Saturday. After Barber earned a controversial split decision over Miranda Maverick, “The Future” got onto the mic to call out Jessica Eye. It’s an opponent she has talked about before so Barber wasn’t surprised Eye responded to the callout, so she hopes that means the UFC will make the fight.
Maycee Barber confident she beat Miranda Maverick: "I got my hand raised and I got the two checks"
Cole Shelton - July 27, 2021
Maycee Barber knew she beat Miranda Maverick when the fight went to the scorecards. Entering her fight at UFC Vegas 32, Barber was on a two-fight losing skid and was in a new gym at Team Alpha Male. She was also set to fight a very dangerous opponent in Maverick, but Barber knew they had a game plan to get the win.
Chris Daukaus expects to finish Shamil Abdurakhimov and get a "big-name" opponent next
Cole Shelton - July 26, 2021
Chris Daukaus didn’t expect that he would be fighting Shamil Abdurakhimov. Daukaus, who joined the UFC in August of 2020, is already 3-0 in the promotion with three first-round knockouts. After his last win over Aleksei Oleinik in February, he expected he would get another ranked opponent next, and was unsure if it would be in the top-10.
Pro fighters make their picks for Cory Sandhagen vs TJ Dillashaw
Cole Shelton - July 22, 2021
In the main event of UFC Vegas 32, Cory Sandhagen welcomes back former bantamweight champ, TJ Dillashaw from his two-year USADA suspension in a highly-anticipated bout. Entering the fight, Sandhagen is a -195 favorite while the former champ is a +165 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. The pros are nearly unanimous in the thinking Sandhagen gets the win with many thinking he stops Dillashaw in the process.
Adrian Yanez believes Randy Costa fight has similar career trajectory to the first Poirier-McGregor scrap, eyes stoppage win
Cole Shelton - July 22, 2021
Adrian Yanez sees a lot of similarities between his UFC Vegas 32 fight against Randy Costa and the first time Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor fought. Yanez and Costa are both coming off back-to-back highlight-reel KO wins. They also both have a lot of hype behind them. Yet, many have said this fight is happening too soon. Yanez, however, disagrees with it as he thinks they will eventually meet again years down the line in a much bigger fight similar to Poirier and McGregor.
Maycee Barber explains move to Team Alpha Male: "I’m not going to sit around and wait for people or beg them to come on this journey with me"
Cole Shelton - July 21, 2021
Maycee Barber has been training at a new camp for her UFC Vegas 32 fight against Miranda Maverick. After Barber lost her second fight in a row to Alexa Grasso at UFC 258, she decided to change camps and had to California to train at Team Alpha Male. “The Future” has already been at several gyms like Factory X, Roufusport, JacksonWink, and in Chicago under Mike Valle among others. However, the reason why she made the switch to Team Alpha Male for this fight was due to COVID-19 restrictions among other reasons.
Randy Costa ecstatic for "fun" fight against Adrian Yanez, expects to "open a lot of people's eyes"
Cole Shelton - July 21, 2021
Randy Costa and Adrian Yanez have one of the weirder fight bookings in recent memory. After Yanez picked up his second UFC win, many on MMA Twitter called for him to face Costa. After the Massachusetts native didn’t respond to fans asking if he’d take the fight, some said he was scared. However, “Zohan” quickly responded saying he’s not scared and he likes Adrian but took a shot at Dr. Pepper which is Yanez’s drink of choice. The Texan dumped on Reese’s which Costa likes and the fight was born.
Kyler Phillips plans to finish Raulian Paiva and get a ranked opponent next: "I'm going to grab that belt"
Cole Shelton - July 20, 2021
Kyler Phillips wasn’t too mad when Raphael Assuncao was forced out of their fight and was replaced by Raulian Paiva. After Phillips beat Song Yadong at UFC 259, many expected him to get a ranked opponent next. That ended up being the case as he was set to meet Raphael Assuncao at UFC Vegas 32. Unfortnately, Assuncao got injured which was disappointing news. However, for Phillips, he said his mindset didn’t change at all.
Maycee Barber expects to finish Miranda Maverick: "I’m not going out there to play around, I’m planning to put her away"
Cole Shelton - July 19, 2021
Maycee Barber wasn’t surprised when she was offered Miranda Maverick as her next fight. After Maverick beat Gillian Robertson at UFC 260, Barber saw all the posts about how fans wanted to see the fight happen. However, given they are two of the up and comers at flyweight, some thought it didn’t make sense. Yet, for Barber, she says she likes the fight and is eager for it.
Miles Johns expects to finish Anderson dos Santos in a "fan-favorite fight" at UFC Vegas 31
Cole Shelton - July 15, 2021
Miles Johns has a ton of confidence in himself coming off a highlight-reel KO win in his last fight. Johns last fought back on Halloween night where he knocked out Kevin Natividad. Following that, many thought he would get a quick turnaround, but nine months later, Johns will return which he says is later than he thought but still is good timing.
Billy Quarantillo expects to finish Gabriel Benitez at UFC Vegas 31 after getting much-needed eye surgery
Cole Shelton - July 14, 2021
Billy Quarantillo expects to be a much better fighter on Saturday night at UFC Vegas 31 when he faces Gabriel Benitez. Quarantillo is coming off his first career UFC loss back at UFC 256 against Gavin Tucker. Following the loss, the rising featherweight contender got married and got eye surgery which he says was much-needed.
Max Griffin happy with UFC 264 win over Carlos Condit, planned to call out Robbie Lawler but wants anyone in the top-15 next
Cole Shelton - July 13, 2021
Max Griffin was ecstatic when he got the chance to fight Carlos Condit. Griffin admitted Condit is one of his favorite fighters of all time and getting to fight him was surreal. However, he knew he had to put his emotions behind him and when they started to fight he had a ton of success.
Stephen Thompson doubts Kamaru Usman would strike with him: "He's going to be shooting for my legs"
Cole Shelton - July 9, 2021
Stephen Thompson knows he’s a bad matchup for the current welterweight champ, Kamaru Usman. Thompson is set to face Gilbert Burns in the co-main event of UFC 264. If he wins, he could very well get a title shot due to the fact he’s the only fighter in the top-five that Usman hasn’t fought. If he does end up getting the title shot, “Wonderboy” knows there’s no chance the champ will strike with him. Instead, he’ll go back to the wrestler, grinding style that got him the title.
Dustin Poirier would "be successful" and "dominant" at welterweight if he moves up, says coach
Cole Shelton - July 8, 2021
Dustin Poirier started his UFC career at featherweight and may end it at welterweight, his strength and conditioning coach, Phil Daru says. Poirier is set to headline UFC 264 in a highly-anticipated trilogy bout against Conor McGregor. It’s a massive fight for both men and in the lead-up to the scrap, “The Diamond” asked if it could take place at welterweight. He wanted the trilogy to take place at three different weight classes but for Daru, that is also due to the fact Poirier is a big lightweight that does cut a lot of weight.
Jerome Rivera plans to "shut down" Zhalgas Zhumagulov at UFC 264: "I'm looking to expose him"
Cole Shelton - July 8, 2021
Jerome Rivera knows his UFC 264 fight against Zhalgas Zhumagulov is do-or-die for his UFC career. Rivera enters the fight being 0-3 in the UFC and not many fighters get the fourth fight if they are winless through three. Yet, Rivera did the UFC a favor in taking a fight against Ode Osbourne up two weight classes at featherweight on just three day’s notice. With that, the UFC promised him another fight regardless of the result and they stuck to their word.
Dustin Poirier "the calmest" he's been ahead of Conor McGregor fight, expects another stoppage win, says coach
Cole Shelton - July 7, 2021
DPhil Daru, Dustin Poirier’s strength and conditioning coach, says “The Diamond” is the calmest he’s ever been before a fight. In the main event of UFC 264, Poirier is set for his trilogy match against McGregor in a highly-anticipated fight. For Daru, he says ever since the first fight he has been game planning on how to train Poirier for the trilogy. However, he says they have been cautious to not overtrain The Diamond and they believe he’s in perfect condition for the fight on Saturday.
Max Griffin says Carlos Condit fight at UFC 264 is "a dream come true," expects to "take his soul"
Cole Shelton - July 7, 2021
Max Griffin had no hesitation to accept his UFC 264 fight against Carlos Condit. After Griffin scored a one-punch KO over Song Kenan he knew he would be getting a big fight. He had back-to-back vicious KO’s as prior to that he TKO’d Ramiz Brahimaj where he nearly tore his ear off with an elbow. When he got a call to face Condit, he said it was an immediate yes but there was some hesitation on the former interim champs side.