Exclusive MMA Interviews News

Cole Shelton - December 8, 2020

Artem Lobov was supposed to make his return to MMA. Lobov was expected to headline ARENA Fight 2 against Ylies Djiroun for the lightweight title, however, it was announced on Tuesday the event is canceled. Although this is a promotion many didn’t expect him to sign with, for Lobov, he just wanted to fight once in 2020.

Cole Shelton - December 7, 2020

David Feldman is hoping to meet with Yoel Romero in the coming days. On Friday, it was revealed Romero was shockingly released from the UFC. Immediately, many thought the middleweight would sign with Bellator or PFL. However, on Monday, it was reported both promotions aren’t interested in bringing in the 43-year-old.

Cole Shelton - December 4, 2020

Gina Mazany is back in the win column. At UFC Vegas 15, Mazany dropped down to flyweight to battle Rachael Ostovich. In the lead-up to the fight, Mazany was unsure how she would feel at 125-pounds but says it was the easiest weight cut of her career and it showed as she TKO’d Ostovich in the third.

Cole Shelton - December 4, 2020

Jack Hermansson is okay with Israel Adesanya moving up to light heavyweight to fight Jan Blachowicz. Sometime in early 2021, Adesanya will look to become a champ-champ against Blachowicz. However, many people didn’t get the fight as both men have plenty of options to defend their own titles. Yet, for Hermansson, he is fine with the fight being made as long as the middleweight champion wins.

Cole Shelton - December 3, 2020

Cody Durden is eager to derail the hype of Jimmy Flick. At UFC Vegas 16, Durden is set to make the walk to the Octagon for the second time but will be doing so at flyweight this time around. In his debut, he stepped up on a week’s notice and fought Chris Guttierrez to a draw at bantamweight. Following that fight, he realized he should be competing at 125-pounds and made the move to down in weight.

Cole Shelton - December 3, 2020

Marvin Vettori has had a hard time getting fights. After Vettori submitted Karl Roberson in the first round back in June, the hope for the Italian was to get a ranked opponent. However, in the months since, it has been a difficult time getting a fight with someone ranked above him. That all changed when he was supposed to fight Jacare Souza at UFC 256 but was pulled from that fight to battle Jack Hermansson in the main event of UFC Vegas 16.

Tom Taylor - December 3, 2020

ONE Championship atomweight star Bi Nguyen is hoping to close out a chaotic year with a huge win over Malaysia’s Jihin Radzuan at ONE: Big Bang, which goes down on the promotion’s home turf in Singapore this Friday. The coronavirus pandemic made 2020 a bumpy year for just about everyone, but it was particularly frustrating for Nguyen. The 31-year-old striking specialist’s bad luck began early in the year, when she was forced out of planned February fight with Japan’s Itsuki Hirata with an injury. March brought another tough break, as Nguyen’s planned Muay Thai bout against Rudzma Abubakar fell through amid the early chaos of the pandemic. The trouble then continued in the third quarter of the year, when ONE Championship’s attempt to reschedule the failed February fight with Hirata came up empty—ostensibly because the Japanese fighter didn’t sign her contract.

Cole Shelton - December 2, 2020

Diego Ferreira has had a hard time getting fights. At UFC 246 in January, Ferreira picked up the biggest win of his career as he submitted former champion, Anthony Pettis, in the second round. It was his sixth straight victory and following the win, many figured he would get a top-10 opponent. However, for the Brazilian, he has yet to fight again and won’t fight until February when he battles Beneil Dariush.

Cole Shelton - December 1, 2020

Jack Hermansson will still be fighting on Saturday night in the main event of UFC Vegas 16. Originally, Hermansson was expected to fight fan-favorite, Darren Till. However, the Englishman was forced out with an injury and was replaced by Kevin Holland. Yet, Holland got COVID-19 and now Hermansson is set to fight Marvin Vettori.

Cole Shelton - November 27, 2020

Parker Porter is viewing this as his true UFC debut. Porter, a 35-year-old heavyweight, took his UFC debut on just days’ notice against Chris Daukaus and was knocked out in the first round. For Porter, he says he was not in the place to accept a fight, as he even had to cut weight but couldn’t say no to the UFC.

Cole Shelton - November 27, 2020

Badou Jack believes there is too much politics in boxing. Although Jack is just 1-2-2 in his last five, he has been part of some controversial decisions. He lost a narrow split decision to Jean Pascal last December in a fight many thought Jack won. He also fought Adonis Stevenson to a draw where many thought he won that fight as well.

Cole Shelton - November 26, 2020

Gina Mazany is making the drop down to 125-pounds. Mazany has been a bantamweight in the UFC for a long time, but at UFC Vegas 15 will make her return to flyweight to take on Rachael Ostovich. When Mazany informed the UFC of her move down in weight, she didn’t think of any opponent but was interested in the idea of fighting Ostovich but doesn’t know what to expect given she hasn’t fought in nearly two years.

Cole Shelton - November 25, 2020

Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship will not be trying to sign Anderson Silva. Back on Halloween night, Silva made the walk to the Octagon for the final time and lost by TKO to Uriah Hall. Since the event, Dana White has been adamant that was the last time the Brazilian would compete for the UFC. It was then revealed he was released from his contract. With him now being a free agent, the former middleweight champion made it clear he was looking to fight again.

Cole Shelton - November 25, 2020

On Saturday night, Mike Tyson will return to the ring to battle a fellow legend in Roy Jones Jr. in an exhibition match. Heading into the fight, Tyson is the -185 favorite while the comeback on Jones Jr. is +158. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro boxers and MMA fighters to get their prediction for the bout. The majority of pros believe it will be Mike Tyson winning the fight but all are hoping both men come out of it safely.

Tom Taylor - November 25, 2020

He’s expected to challenge ONE Heavyweight World Champion Brandon “The Truth” Vera sometime in 2021, but already, former UFC star Arjan “Singh” Bhullar is salivating at the possible matchups to be had in the newly-revamped heavyweight division in ONE Championship. The 34-year-old is 10-1 overall in his career, with impressive wins over Marcelo Golm and Juan Adams, and a recent three-round unanimous decision victory over former ONE heavyweight title challenger and Cage Warriors heavyweight champ Mauro Cerilli.

Cole Shelton - November 24, 2020

Badou Jack is not impressed by his upcoming opponent, Blake McKernan. On the Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. undercard, Jack is looking to get back into the win column against McKernan. Although his opponent is undefeated, he is not well-known in the boxing community and Jack says he is only fighting him to get paid to donate all the money to his charity.

Tom Taylor - November 23, 2020

Former UFC middleweight Rob Wilkinson, who now competes at light heavyweight, has not had an easy time finding fights since his time with the Las Vegas-based promotion came to an end. He’s hoping that changes soon.

Cole Shelton - November 19, 2020

Brandon Royval is confident he will prove the doubters wrong once again when he fights Brandon Moreno. At UFC 255, Royval is the betting underdog once again as he has been in all three of his UFC fights. Yet, against Moreno, he believes this is a perfect matchup for him to have success against.