Exclusive MMA Interviews News

Cole Shelton - February 11, 2020

James Krause had a crazy weekend in Houston, to say the least. The UFC welterweight arrived in Houston on Wednesday to corner Youssef Zalal but on Friday that all changed. He found out Antonio Arroyo was out of his middleweight bout just after weigh-ins and told his manager he would take the fight.

Cole Shelton - February 10, 2020

Leon Edwards is looking to rematch Kamaru Usman and is confident he would dethrone the champion. Edwards and Usman fought back at UFC on Fox 17 in December of 2015 where it was Usman who won by unanimous decision. It was a close fight where two judges had it 29-28, with the Englishman winning the first round. Yet it was Usman’s wrestling which was the difference-maker.

Cole Shelton - February 10, 2020

Jan Blachowicz always wanted to rematch Corey Anderson. The two first fought back at UFC 191 where it was Anderson who used his wrestling to score a unanimous decision win. Now, in the main event of UFC Rio Rancho, they will run it back where the stakes are higher, as the winner is expected to receive the next title shot against Jon Jones.

Cole Shelton - February 7, 2020

Mirsad Bektic believes his Tristar teammate Georges St-Pierre will fight inside the Octagon again. St-Pierre has not fought since he submitted Michael Bisping at UFC 217 to win the middleweight title and become a champion in two divisions. Since that fight, which was his return from a four-year layoff, many have wondered if the Canadian will fight again. He has hinted at a Khabib Nurmagomedov matchup but the UFC wasn’t interested in it.

Cole Shelton - February 6, 2020

Colby Covington believes Jorge Masvidal won’t do a thing when they cross paths at American Top Team. Following Covington’s TKO loss to Kamaru Usman at UFC 245 for the welterweight title, he spent time in Oregon and has yet to go back to train at ATT. With “Chaos” not being back in nearly two months since the fight, Jorge Masvidal said that the former interim champion left the gym for good.

Cole Shelton - February 6, 2020

In the co-main event of UFC 247, Valentina Shevchenko is looking to defend her flyweight title for a third time when she battles Katlyn Chookagian. Heading into the fight, Shevchenko is a -1200 favorite while the American challenger is a +700 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the scrap. To no surprise, the majority are leaning towards Shevchenko getting it done, but one is picking the upset. The pros also believe the champ is running out of challengers and think the Amanda Nunes trilogy should happen next.

Cole Shelton - February 6, 2020

In the main event of UFC 247, Jon Jones is looking to defend his light heavyweight belt once again when he battles Dominick Reyes. Heading into the fight, the champion is a -500 favorite while the undefeated challenger is a +350 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions for the fight and the pros are unanimous in this one believing Jones defends his belt.

Cole Shelton - February 4, 2020

Leon Edwards is not a fan of Kamaru Usman and Jorge Masvidal’s altercation at Radio Row during Super Bowl week. The two were doing radio shows to talk about what’s next for them when they saw each other and got into a verbal altercation. Immediately, it went all over social media and UFC president Dana White said he was not a fan of it. For Edwards, he agrees with White and says it makes MMA and the UFC look fake like the WWE.

Cole Shelton - February 4, 2020

Mirsad Bektic admits after losing to Josh Emmett in July it was hard for him mentally. Bektic made his return to the Octagon for the first time in over a year after multiple injuries and a canceled fight to Renato Moicano at UFC 231. After the loss, Bektic started to reflect on the past year and admits he was in a dark place.

Cole Shelton - January 31, 2020

Kevin Lee did not expect to be fighting Charles Oliveira next but is excited about the scrap. In the main event of UFC Brasilia on March 14, Lee will look to make it two in a row when he battles the local favorite Oliveira. “The Motown Phenom” says fighting a Brazilian in Brazil is something not many people want to do. But he is excited about the opportunity.

Natasha Hooper - January 31, 2020

This week on his Weighing In podcast, Josh Thomson announced his official retirement from fighting. “I can say that I’m officially retired,” Thomson began.

Mike Heck - January 31, 2020

While there were two big events in the MMA world on Saturday night — UFC on ESPN+ 24 and Bellator 238 — Montel Jackson may have won the entire weekend before his fight with Felipe Colares even began. Prior to his unanimous decision win over Colares in Raleigh, NC, Jackson walked to the Octagon to a song very few combat sports fans expected to hear: Whitney Houston’s mega-hit song released in November 1992, I Will Always Love You.

Cole Shelton - January 30, 2020

Kevin Lee has made it clear he is looking to sign two bout agreements at once. Lee is set to headline UFC Brasilia against Charles Oliveira on March 14, yet many expected him to fight Islam Makhachev. After Lee knocked out Gregor Gillespie, he and the Russian went back-and-forth and agreed to fight one another on social media. But, according to “The Motown Phenom” why it isn’t happening next is because Makhachev wanted to wait until June.

Cole Shelton - January 29, 2020

Ilir Latifi expects Alexander Gustafsson to fight again soon. Shortly after Gustafsson was submitted by Anthony Smith in the main event of UFC Stockholm he announced his retirement. Yet many thought the Swede would come back and a few months later he revealed he is considering a return.

Alfredo Zullino - January 28, 2020

Amongst the most hardcore of fight fans, interest is growing in an extremely brutal combat sport: Lethwei. Also called Burmese bare knuckle boxing, Lethwei is far older than other combat sports like MMA, as there are records of matches taking place as far back as the third century in Myanmar. Lethwei, nicknamed “The Art of Nine Limbs” because it includes head-butts, punches, elbows, kicks and knees, is considered one of the most violent sports in the world. Clinches, sweeps, and throws are accepted techniques as well, which makes the sport even more dangerous.

Cole Shelton - January 28, 2020

Sodiq Yusuff is now a perfect 4-0 inside the Octagon, and ranked in the featherweight top-15. At UFC 246, Yusuff competed in the biggest fight of his career when he took on Andre Fili. The Nigerian-American knew it was going to be a tough fight but was confident he would get his hand raised. That is exactly what happened as he edged out a decision victory.

Cole Shelton - January 27, 2020

Kevin Lee believes he’s the true champion of the lightweight division. Lee recently returned to the win column with a massive knockout win over Gregor Gillespie at UFC 244. Following the win, “The Motown Phenom” is set to headline UFC Brasilia against Charles Oliveira. He then plans to fight Islam Makhachev in Russia.

Cole Shelton - January 24, 2020

Curtis Millender is entering his fight at Bellator 238 fight against Moses Murrietta with a chip on his shoulder. Millender, who was recently released from the UFC, immediately reached out to Bellator to try and sign back with the promotion after fighting for them in 2015 and 2017.