Exclusive MMA Interviews News

Mike Pendleton - January 22, 2019

Two-weight UFC champion Amanda Nunes made some headlines last week when she said that she was ‘done’ fighting at featherweight after she defeated former champion Cris Cyborg in 51 seconds at UFC 232 to become the UFC’s first ever two-weight women’s champion. While Nunes stated that many knew the featherweight division was only made for the arrival of Cyborg, another featherweight, Megan Anderson took exception to Nunes’ comments and called for her to be stripped of the title. As the division’s future is up in the air, one person close to Nunes believes she won’t fight again at featherweight.

Cole Shelton - January 22, 2019

Daniel Cormier had originally planned to retire by his 40th birthday. Well, things may have changed. “DC’s” birthday falls on March 20, and the only pay-per-view between now and then is UFC 235 – as UFC 234 is already finalized – which already has two title fights. Now, the question remains on whether or not Cormier will retire before then or stick around longer.

Tom Taylor - January 21, 2019

Riding high on an impressive defeat of Chas Skelly in his UFC debut, red-hot featherweight prospect Bobby Moffett is eager to get back into the cage. And as it turns out, he knows exactly who he’d like to fight and where he’d like to do it. He’s eyeing a fight with fellow prospect Bryce Mitchell, ideally on the UFC’s March 23 return to Nashville, Tennessee.

Tom Taylor - January 21, 2019

After being deprived of his promised shot at the UFC welterweight title, top contender Colby Covington has had plenty to say about UFC President Dana White of late. Of course, Covington isn’t the only person to make negative comments about the polarizing UFC boss recently. Retired boxer turned promoter Oscar De La Hoya has also gone back and forth with Dana White over the last few weeks, even challenging the UFC President to a fight on the undercard of the next Canelo Alvarez pay-per-view.

Cole Shelton - January 21, 2019

Elias Theodorou’s toughest fight is not against any UFC fighter. Rather, it is taking on the United States Anti-Doping Agency to get a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) for medical cannabis which has been prescribed by his doctor. Although cannabis is legalized in Canada where Theodorou lives, it doesn’t matter to USADA.

Mike Pendleton - January 18, 2019

Greg Hardy will be making his promotional debut at UFC Brooklyn on Saturday, when he takes on Allen Crowder in the ESPN+ co-main event. The placement of Hardy on the card has drawn plenty of criticism from plenty of people not only cause of Hardy’s past but also because Rachael Ostovich is on the card as well. Hardy, well-known as former defensive end superstar in the NFL, had his career cut short due to domestic violence allegations which will be the dark cloud that follows him every single day throughout his career.

Tom Taylor - January 18, 2019

On Friday morning, UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw silenced many of his doubters and made weight for his flyweight title fight with Henry Cejudo. With his weight cut out of the way, the only remaining challenge is the fight itself. To say TJ Dillashaw is feeling confident would be an understatement. Despite the fact that he’s slimmed down quite a bit, he says he’s actually stronger than ever heading into this flyweight title fight.

Cole Shelton - January 17, 2019

In the main event of the UFC’s first card on ESPN+ this Saturday night, UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw will try to make history as the next two-division champion in the UFC, as he drops down to flyweight to challenge divisional champ Henry Cejudo. Ahead of the champion vs. champion fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions. Some had major question marks surrounding Dillashaw’s weight cut, while another fighter couldn’t even make a pick.

Tom Taylor - January 15, 2019

On November 9, UFC veteran Isaac Vallie-Flagg stepped through the ropes of the World Bare Knuckle Fighting Federation (WBKFF) ring for a gloveless scrap with Corey Simpson. More than two months later, Vallie-Flagg and many other fighters who competed on the inaugural WBKFF card are still awaiting payment. When Vallie-Flagg drew attention to his outstanding WBKFF payment on Twitter last week, he received a response from MMA legend Bas Rutten, who was appointed as WBKFF president ahead of the November card. Rutten assured Vallie-Flagg that his payment is coming soon, allegedly once WBKFF founder Tomasz Stankiewicz receives the pay-per-view revenue for the card.

Cole Shelton - January 15, 2019

Elias Theodorou already has his next opponent in mind. Derek Brunson, who is currently ranked eighth in the middleweight division, recently called out the 14th ranked Theodorou. and Theodorou is all for it. “I think it is a good fight. Obviously, he is a tough competitor,” Theodorou said to BJPENN.com. “He has shown there are ways to beat him, obviously by being on a two-fight losing streak. I’m looking for, if all goes well, to make it three. It is a great fight and he presents challenges but I have shown time and time again that I’m one tough puzzle to solve and I look forward to getting my hand raised.” 

Cole Shelton - January 14, 2019

Allen Crowder, who didn’t fight at all in 2018, will return to the Octagon against a controversial figure in Greg Hardy this Saturday night on ESPN+. Hardy who was a former pro-bowler in the NFL, was involved in an alleged domestic violence case which got him kicked out of the league. Now, he will be making his UFC debut against Crowder. And Crowder is ready.

Cole Shelton - January 13, 2019

When MMA fans think of the top gyms in the sport, some of the first to come to mind are JacksonWink, American Top Team, and of course, American Kickboxing Academy (AKA). There is no question that AKA is one of the top gyms in the sport, with the likes of Daniel Cormier, Cain Velasquez, and Khabib Nurmagomedov all training under its roof.

Chris Taylor - January 12, 2019

UFC legend BJ Penn returned to the octagon at last month’s UFC 232 event in Los Angeles for a lightweight fight with Ryan Hall. Unfortunately for the former UFC lightweight and welterweight champion, Penn’s return to 155-pounds did not go as planned.

Cole Shelton - January 12, 2019

After Ion Cutelaba had to pull out of their scheduled UFC on ESPN+1 bout in Brooklyn due to injury, Glover Teixeira needed a new opponent. Now, just days from fight night, he has one in UFC middleweight Karl Roberson. Roberson is moving up in weight to challenge Teixeira which was first reported by FloCombat. For Roberson, when he got the call for the fight, it was an easy decision to make.

Mike Straus - January 11, 2019

Few fighters have made as big of an impact in such a short time as the rising lightweight contender, Alexander ‘The Great’ Hernandez. Hernandez will make the walk to the Octagon for just the third time when he faces Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone at UFC Brooklyn on January 19. However, the 26-year-old exhibits a cool confident demeanor well beyond his years.

Cole Shelton - January 11, 2019

Jason Knight is looking for a new home. The fan favorite told BJPENN.com yesterday that the UFC has released him from his contract. Even though Knight was released by the UFC, he did have some success inside the Octagon. Although he went 4-5 in his nine fights, he did have a four-fight winning streak, including wins over Dan Hooker and Alex Caceres. Those wins got him into the rankings and because of that, Knight doubts he will be a free agent for long.

Mike Straus - January 10, 2019

In recent years the sport of jiu-jitsu has exploded in popularity and right at the forefront of the movement is Garry Tonon. A grappler by trade, Tonon recently dove head first into MMA, going 3-0 under the ONE Championship banner. Having competed in countless grappling and BJJ tournaments “The Lion Killer”, as he is known, believes we are just now starting to see the true essence of jiu-jitsu.

Cole Shelton - January 10, 2019

Jason Knight has been released by the UFC. “They cut me after that last loss,” Knight told BJPENN.com this week.