Exclusive MMA Interviews News
From drug dealer, robber to MMA fighter: the incredible story of Walter Pugliesi
Alfredo Zullino - September 1, 2020
Who are mixed martial artists? A group of men and women punching each other for money. But who are they once they get home, or who were they before? They might have been a math teacher, a real estate agent, a model, an office worker. They also might be a drug dealer. That’s the story of Walter Pugliesi.
After moving to Team Elevation, Montana De La Rosa looking for "a dominant win" over Viviane Araujo
Cole Shelton - September 1, 2020
Montana De La Rosa made a big career change ahead of her UFC Vegas 9 fight against Viviane Araujo. For the majority of her career, Montana and her husband, Mark, were training in a small gym in Fort Worth, Texas. Yet, ahead of her UFC Vegas 9 fight, Montana decided she needed a change. That change was going to Colorado to train at Team Elevation.
Jeff Monson wants Gordon Ryan superfight
Andrew Whitelaw - August 31, 2020
Jeff Monson would like a grappling super fight against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu superstar, Gordon Ryan. Monson is one of the most highly-decorated grapplers in MMA.
Joe Solecki "surprised" he submitted Austin Hubbard in the first round, eyes December return
Cole Shelton - August 28, 2020
Joe Solecki is now 2-0 in the UFC but he even surprised himself with his last performance. At UFC Vegas 7, Solecki was taking on Austin Hubbard in a very intriguing match-up. Hubbard entered the fight 2-2 in the UFC, with his two losses coming by decision to Davi Ramos and Mark O. Madsen, who are elite grapplers.
Zak Cummings expects to finish Alessio Di Chirico, get ranked opponent next time out
Cole Shelton - August 27, 2020
Zak Cummings was surprised when he found out he would be fighting Alessio Di Chirico. Cummings will be returning this Saturday at UFC Vegas 8 after dropping a decision to Omari Akhmedov last September at UFC 242. The hope for Cummings was to make a quick turnaround. Yet, he was turned down a couple of times and then the COVID-19 pandemic hit leaving Cummings not being able to fight in nearly a year.
Pro fighters make their picks for Anthony Smith vs. Aleksandar Rakic
Cole Shelton - August 27, 2020
In the main event of UFC Vegas 8, Anthony Smith is returning just three months after his loss to Glover Teixeira to take on Aleksandar Rakic. Heading into the fight, Smith is a +215 underdog while the Austrian is a -275 favorite. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The majority believe the underdog in Smith will get back into the win column.
Carlo Pedersoli Jr. slated to make his Bellator debut on September 24 against Grachik Bozinyan
Alfredo Zullino - August 27, 2020
A Bellator welterweight clash between Carlo Pedersoli Jr. (11-3 MMA, 0-0 Bellator) and Grachik Bozinyan (10-5 MMA, 0-1 Bellator) is set for September 24 in Milan, Italy, sources with knowledge of the situation told BJPENN.com. The sources asked for anonymity since the news hasn’t been officially confirmed yet. The Miami-born Italian fighter was supposed to make his promotional debut at Bellator 239 back in February against Mark Lemminger, in Thackerville, Oklahoma, but Pedersoli was eventually forced to pull out of the fight due to an infection.
Former UFC fighter Clay Collard says boxing is not a "permanent switch," opens up on PFL contract
Cole Shelton - August 26, 2020
Clay Collard is one of boxing’s biggest stars of 2020. The former UFC featherweight is signed to Top Rank boxing and has gone 5-0 in 2020 including a TKO win last Saturday. At the beginning of the year, he was being brought in to lose against some of Top Rank’s best-undefeated prospects. Yet, Collard won the fights and is now getting pushed by the ESPN boxing promotion.
Orion and Louis Cosce confident they will both hold multiple titles in the UFC: "We will make history"
Cole Shelton - August 24, 2020
Louis and Orion Cosce already made history being the first brothers to compete and win on the Contender Series and are looking to make more. Both Cosce brothers were underdogs in their Contender Series fights, yet both earned stoppage wins. When Dana White announced they were both signed to the UFC it made their dreams come true.
With UFC job on the line, Mike Rodriguez expects to earn first-round stoppage over Marcin Prachnio
Cole Shelton - August 21, 2020
Mike Rodriguez knows his UFC Vegas 7 fight against Marcin Prachnio is do-or-die for his UFC career. Rodriguez was knocked out by Da Un Jung in December following a decision loss to John Allan which was overturned to a no-contest. The 31-year-old is 1-2 with one no-contest in the UFC.
After knockout win over Matt Mitrione, Tim Johnson eyes rematch with Cheick Kongo
Cole Shelton - August 21, 2020
Tim Johnson believes he has his confidence back. After going 4-3 in the UFC, Johnson signed with Bellator and in his debut fought Cheick Kongo. It was a big fight for him, and unfortunately, did not go his way as he suffered a knockout loss in just 68 seconds.
Pro fighters make their picks for Pedro Munhoz vs. Frankie Edgar
Cole Shelton - August 21, 2020
In the main event of UFC Vegas 7, a key bantamweight bout headlines the card as Pedro Munhoz welcomes Frankie Edgar to the division. Heading into the fight, Munhoz is a -265 favorite while the former UFC lightweight champion is a +205 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The majority believe bantamweight is where Frankie Edgar should’ve been his entire career as he will pull off the upset and beat Pedro Munhoz.
Marlon Vera believes he made Sean O'Malley "quit" at UFC 252, wants Jimmie Rivera next
Cole Shelton - August 19, 2020
Marlon Vera had no doubt in his mind he would be the first person to beat Sean O’Malley. In the co-main event of UFC 252, O’Malley was looking to remain undefeated against Vera. It was an intriguing matchup with many pundits thinking it would be “Sugar” getting his hand raised.
Ovince Saint Preux on Alonzo Menifield fight: "I can break him in the first round"
Cole Shelton - August 19, 2020
Ovince Saint Preux had no hesitation when offered a bout with Alonzo Menifield on short notice. Originally, Saint Preux was expected to battle Shamil Gamzatov this Saturday night but his opponent withdrew. On just a week and a half notice, Menifield took the fight. For “OSP,” he says he just wanted to fight and the opponent didn’t matter.
John Salter "expecting a three-round battle" against Andrew Kapel, believes a win earns him a title shot
Cole Shelton - August 19, 2020
John Salter thought he had done enough to earn a title shot following his last fight. With the Bellator middleweight title vacant and Gegard Mousasi not being able to get into the United States, he thought the timing was perfect for him to take on Douglas Lima. The 35-year-old is on a two-fight winning streak. He is also 7-1 in Bellator with his lone loss coming to Rafael Lovato Jr.
Alonzo Menifield planning for "three-round war" in co-main event against Ovince Saint Preux
Cole Shelton - August 18, 2020
Alonzo Menifield was ecstatic when he got the call to step up on short notice to take on Ovince Saint Preux. Ever since Menifield lost his first professional fight to Devin Clark at UFC 250, the Fortis MMA product wanted to make a quick turnaround to get the bad taste out of his mouth. So, when he was offered a co-main event spot against a perennial contender, Ovince Saint Preux, he knew he couldn’t turn it down.
Sean O'Malley still wants to fight Cody Garbrandt, but says he might let it build up some more
Cole Shelton - August 14, 2020
Sean O’Malley still wants to fight Cody Garbrandt even though the former bantamweight champion is dropping down to flyweight. O’Malley is set to fight Marlon Vera in the co-main event of UFC 252. It is a very interesting fight and many thought “Sugar” would call out Garbrandt if he got his hand raised.
Junior dos Santos wants rematch with Francis Ngannou, trilogy with Stipe Miocic
Cole Shelton - August 14, 2020
Junior dos Santos hopes to run things back with Francis Ngannou and have his trilogy bout with Stipe Miocic. dos Santos is set to fight Jairzinho Rozenstruik at UFC 252 this Saturday night. It is a very interesting bout and if the Brazilian gets his hand raised he has two names in mind to call out. But, the fight he really wants is the rematch with Ngannou as “Cigano” believes he didn’t show everything he could.