Exclusive MMA Interviews News
Bryan Battle confident he'll overwhelm Gilbert Urbina en route to a finish and winning TUF 29
Cole Shelton - August 25, 2021
Bryan Battle is one win away from becoming the next Ultimate Fighter. Battle was set to face Tresean Gore in the finale but last week, Dana White announced Gore was out of the fight with a knee injury. According to Battle, he only found out one day prior and he believes the fight with Gore is one of those cursed matchups in MMA as it has been canceled a couple of times in the past.
Sam Alvey expects to finish Wellington Turman in his "last shot" to save his UFC job
Cole Shelton - August 25, 2021
Sam Alvey thought he was fighting for his UFC job for his past two fights but he’s getting one more shot at UFC Vegas 35 against Wellington Turman. Alvey is winless in his last six as he’s 0-5-1. Yet, his draw against Dan Un Jung was a fight many thought he won. After the draw, he moved down to middleweight where he was submitted by Julian Marquez. He will remain at 185lbs for this scrap against Turman.
Pro fighters make their picks for Edson Barboza vs. Giga Chikadze
Cole Shelton - August 25, 2021
In the main event of UFC Vegas 35, top-10 featherweights and two of the best strikers in the division collide as Edson Barboza takes on Giga Chikadze. Ahead of the fight, Barboza is a -115 favorite while the Georgian is the -105 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The pros are split on this one but the slight majority lean towards Giga Chikadze getting it done and likely by stoppage.
Anthony Taylor confident he will "shock the world" with a win over Tommy Fury: "The only thing special he has is the last name Fury"
Cole Shelton - August 24, 2021
Anthony Taylor is glad he called out Jake Paul as the brash YouTuber turned boxer has given him a massive opportunity. Before Paul was set to fight Ben Askren, Taylor admits he wasn’t believing his skill and talked crap about him on social media. Paul’s coach then messaged Taylor to come and train and he impressed Paul and he has since been a main training partner of Paul and “The Problem Child” was the one who got him this boxing match against Tommy Fury on his undercard.
Giga Chikadze expects to finish Edson Barboza in "spectacular fashion" and become backup fighter for UFC 266 title fight
Cole Shelton - August 23, 2021
Giga Chikadze is excited to headline his first UFC show and knows his fight against Edson Barboza will be a fan-friendly one. Chikadze is coming off the biggest win of his career as he scored a first-round TKO over Cub Swanson. After that, he began calling for top-five opponents, but that didn’t happen, however, he did get a main event against Barboza which he is eager about.
Ramiz Brahimaj says there's no pressure on him after eventful UFC debut, confident he will finish Sasha Palatnikov
Cole Shelton - August 19, 2021
Ramiz Brahimaj had a memorable UFC debut, although it didn’t go the way he wanted. Brahimaj finally made his Octagon debut against Max Griffin in November and lost the fight by TKO due to his ear nearly falling off. Despite the ending of the fight, Brahimaj says the way he fought Griffin and how it was competitive, proves he belongs in the UFC.
Pro fighters make their picks for Jared Cannonier vs. Kelvin Gastelum
Cole Shelton - August 19, 2021
In the main event of UFC Vegas 34, top-10 middleweights collide as Jared Cannonier takes on Kelvin Gastelum. Ahead of the fight, Cannonier is a -150 favorite while Gastelum is a +130 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The majority believe Gastelum will pull off the upset and get back in the win column.
Vinc Pichel plans to "whoop" Austin Hubbard after changing camps to Factory X: "I'm looking to end it pretty quick"
Cole Shelton - August 18, 2021
Vinc Pichel is excited to show off how much better he has gotten since changing camps to Factory X. Pichel has been training in California for years now, but he recently decided to move to Colorado and train at Factory X. For Pichel, he says he immediately clicked with head coach, Marc Montoya and the team.
Bi Nguyen feels better than ever ahead of Jenelyn Olsim fight: "I have the skill to be the champion"
Tom Taylor - August 18, 2021
ONE Championship atomweight star Bi Nguyen feels like she’s entering the prime of her fighting life. Nguyen fights Filipina prospect Jenelyn Olsim at ONE: Battleground III this Friday in Singapore. The Vietnamese-American striking specialist will enter the fight with arguably the biggest win of her career in the rear-view mirror: a hard-fought decision triumph over Indian wrestling sensation Ritu Phogat.
Chase Sherman expects to finish Parker Porter and answer Rodrigo Nascimento's callout
Cole Shelton - August 17, 2021
Chase Sherman is eager to return to the win column. Sherman suffered a decision loss to Andrei Arlovski back in April. He will now return at UFC Vegas 34 against Parker Porter. He was supposed to fight Porter on the same day in April but he was forced out and replaced by Arlovski.
Brandon Royval expects to finish "the scariest flyweight" in Alexandre Pantoja and earn rematch with Brandon Moreno: "There's unfinished business"
Cole Shelton - August 17, 2021
Brandon Royval wanted the toughest fight he could get in his return and that’s exactly what he got. Back in November at UFC 255, Royval fought Brandon Moreno, and at the end of the first round, he dislocated his shoulder and the fight was called. Following that, he had surgery which he says was much-needed.
Cheick Kongo hopes win over Sergei Kharitonov earns him a rematch against Ryan Bader: "I'll fight him in the street, I don't care"
Cole Shelton - August 16, 2021
Cheick Kongo still believes he should’ve gotten an immediate rematch against Ryan Bader. At Bellator 226 in September of 2019, Kongo fought Bader for the heavyweight title and the fight ended in a No Contest due to an eye poke. Since then, Kongo has only competed once losing a split decision to Tim Johnson last October.
Stevie Ray details the "shady" tactics the UFC used which forced him to retire
Cole Shelton - August 12, 2021
Stevie Ray announced his retirement from MMA in September 2020, which many thought was due to his knee injuries. However, there is much more to the story, which Ray has never spoken publicly about. Ray competed in the UFC from 2015 and had a 7-4 record where in his last fight, he picked up what he calls the biggest win of his career as he defeated Michael Johnson. He also fought the likes of Paul Felder, and Leonardo Santos as well as defeating Joe Lauzon and Ross Pearson among others. Yet, for quite some time, Ray had heard rumblings the UFC wanted him out of the organization, and that finally happened when they released him, but he covered it up with him announcing his retirement.
Ciryl Gane wants Francis Ngannou fight in Paris in December or January: "It will be a really big fight"
Cole Shelton - August 12, 2021
Ciryl Gane is hoping his heavyweight title unification fight against Francis Ngannou happens in Paris, France. Gane claimed the interim heavyweight title at UFC 265 with a TKO victory over Derrick Lewis. It was the Frenchman’s fourth fight since December of 2020 and now with his wife set to give birth, he is looking to take some time off but is interested in the fight happening late this year or early next.
Ciryl Gane pleased with TKO victory over Derrick Lewis at UFC 265: "It was a really great performance"
Cole Shelton - August 11, 2021
Ciryl Gane never expected he would be fighting for UFC gold in just his 10th professional MMA fight. Gane signed to the UFC at 3-0 and quickly rose up the heavyweight ranks. In his 10th professional fight, he headlined UFC 265 against Derrick Lewis for the interim heavyweight title. For the Frenchman, he says he always knew he would fight for UFC gold but didn’t think it would happen this quickly.
Danny Sabatello blasts ranked Bellator bantaweights for ducking him, expects to finish Johnny Campbell
Cole Shelton - August 10, 2021
Danny Sabatello doesn’t understand why he isn’t ranked in Bellator’s bantamweight division. Sabatello made good in his Bellator debut as he dominated Brett Johns for all three rounds to win a clear-cut decision. Johns was a high-profile signing for Bellator and after Sabatello dominated the scrap, he expected he would be ranked but that was not the case.
Georgi Karakhanyan hopes AJ McKee becomes Bellator's lightweight champ so he can earn the rematch for the belt
Cole Shelton - August 6, 2021
Georgi Karakhanyan knew he shouldn’t have cut to featherweight anymore, and his eight-second KO loss to AJ McKee cemented that. Karakhanyan thought of moving up earlier but Bellator started the grand prix which made the 36-year-old stay at 145lbs. Unfortnately, in the opening round, he faced McKee and was knocked out in eight seconds. After the loss, he decided he would move up to lightweight and knows he is much better at that weight class.
UFC 265 | Pro fighters make their picks for Derrick Lewis vs. Ciryl Gane interim title fight
Cole Shelton - August 5, 2021
In the main event of UFC 265, the interim heavyweight title is up for grabs as Derrick Lewis takes on Ciryl Gane. Ahead of the fight, Gane is a -380 favorite while “The Black Beast” is a +290 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The majority of the pros believe it will be Gane being too technical for Lewis and winning a decision. However, they all still think Lewis is a live dog as he only needs to land one punch.