MMA News

Russell Ess - May 19, 2017

Dillon Danis is one of the most recognizable grappling stars and has crossed over with getting quite a bit of recognition amongst MMA fans with helping UFC superstar Conor McGregor train for his last two fights. Over the weekend, Danis competed in the Submission Underground 4 grappling event against MMA veteran Jake Shields. Shields ended up beating Danis in their match in overtime, displaying his high level of grappling prowess. After a 10-minute round where neither Shields nor Danis could lock up a submission, they went into overtime where Shields was able to pull off a faster escape, taking the win.

bjpenndotcom - May 19, 2017

Earlier this year, former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw learned that he would be stepping into the Octagon to fight his former teammate Cody Garbrandt for the UFC bantamweight title. While the pair coached opposite one another on The Ultimate Fighter, it was revealed recently that Garbrandt would be heading to Germany to undergo a procedure on his back. While UFC President Dana White was confident Garbrandt would be healed due to the fact that he sent ‘No Love’ to his doctor in Germany, the UFC President revealed that a backup plan was in the works. Should Garbrandt be unable to fight Dillashaw on July 8th, the UFC will look to book a flyweight title fight between champion Demetrious Johnson and TJ Dillashaw.

bjpenndotcom - May 19, 2017

UFC women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes is currently gearing up for her second bantamweight title defense against Valentina Shevchenko. Ahead of that fight however, it is no secret that Nunes is looking to ultimately win a second UFC title. While initially, the champ expressed her desire to move up in weight, with the addition of a UFC women’s flyweight division at 125 pounds, Nunes now could very well move down in weight in pursuit of her second UFC women’s title. That of course could make things very interesting given that UFC women’s strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk has expressed her desire to move up to flyweight to pursue her second women’s title. Nunes spoke to MMAJunkie to discuss a move to the women’s 145 pound division, but also a potential move to the newly formed women’s flyweight division, which will see its first champ crowned after a season of TUF.

bjpenndotcom - May 19, 2017

On July 8th, UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt is set to step into the Octagon to defend his title against former teammate, and former UFC bantamweight champion, TJ Dillashaw at UFC 213. Unfortunately, ahead of the fight, Garbrandt has revealed that his back is injured. The champ was sent to UFC President Dana White’s doctor in Germany who cured White’s Meneires Disease. While White is extremely confident that Garbrandt will come home from Germany healthy enough to fight, a backup plan is in place. Should ‘No Love’ be unable to defend his title, TJ Dillashaw will likely drop down to flyweight and challenge Demetrious Johnson for the UFC flyweight title, where Johnson will look to set the record for most UFC title defenses.

Russell Ess - May 18, 2017

UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor has signed his bout agreement for a boxing match against undefeated boxing legend Floyd Mayweather. Now, UFC President Dana White is off to negotiate with Team Mayweather on the terms of the bout and will look to get a signed contract to make this fight that many believed had no chances of happening, including himself.

Russell Ess - May 18, 2017

UFC 211 saw some great fights go down at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas over the weekend. With some top ranked fighters competing on the card, the UFC rankings have been freshly updated.

Tom Taylor - May 18, 2017

On May 28, the UFC will touch down in beautiful Stockholm, Sweden with an exciting night of fights. In the evening’s co-main event, rapidly  rising light heavyweight contenders Volkan Oezdemir and Misha Cirkunov will collide in a bout that has title implications written all over it. In advance of this fight, Oezdemir joined host Kinch on BJ Penn Radio to discuss Cirkunov, and the challenges he presents as an opponent.

Tom Taylor - May 18, 2017

Last weekend, on the main card of UFC 211, Jorge Masvidal gave up a close decision to Demian Maia in a clash of top-ranked welterweights. On Wednesday evening, Masvidal’s main training partner Colby Covington appeared on BJ Penn Radio to discuss the fight. He explained that he believes Masvidal should have received the nod, but that losing questionable decisions is nothing new for the veteran. “I thought my boy ‘Gamebred’ Jorge Masvidal was way more effective,” Covington said. “He did a lot more damage. He wobbled and hurt Demian Maia at the end of the first round. I thought he won the fight, you know, but he never gets the judges calls. That’s been his whole career, the story of his whole career. He’s dominated guys, beaten up guys in the fight aspect, but they’ve won on points or won by the judges’ score, like against Al Iaquinta. But it is what it is. It’s disappointing, you know. It’s his time to get his title shot, and I really wish that he was going to get that, but he’s still one fight away. He beats a guy like Stephen Thompson and he’s right back there. But it is what it is, you’ve gotta move on. The judges didn’t pick him that night, but I think Demian Maia knew who the better fighter was that night.”

bjpenndotcom - May 18, 2017

Throughout the course of the history of MMA, Brazil has continued to produce not only successful MMA fighters, but also successful MMA coaches. Nova Uniao head coach Andre Pederneiras is one of those coaches. The man who coached UFC champion Jose Aldo through his UFC career has trained countless Brazilian MMA fighters and coached them through the UFC ranks. Given that, it may come as a shock to many to hear that Pederneiras is encouraging his fighters to leave Brazil and come to America. He spoke to AG Fight to discuss why he encourages his fighters to leave Brazil, and the difference in national support for athletes:

Russell Ess - May 18, 2017

Robbie Lawler vs. Donald Cerrone are set to throw down in the middle of the Octagon at UFC 213. We are surely excited to see this one. Are you? Well, you better be, or “Cowboy” has a little message for you.

Tom Taylor - May 18, 2017

On June 17, Colby Covington will step into the Octagon in far-off Singapore, where he will battle South Korean star Dong Hyun Kim in the starkest test of his career thus far. Despite the scale of this test, the American Top Team staple is confident he can beat Kim decisively. Covington broke down this high-stakes showdown on the latest episode of BJ Penn Radio:

Tom Taylor - May 18, 2017

Last weekend, on the undercard of UFC 211, dangerous lightweight talent James Vick picked up a gorgeous first-round TKO win over the durable Polo Reyes. With this win, he built on the momentum of a recent D’Arce choke defeat of Abel Trujillo, further separated himself from a loss to Beneil Dariush, and reestablished himself as a definite fighter to watch in the perilous UFC lightweight division. In the wake of this impressive defeat of Reyes, Vick made a clever callout of Kevin Less and Michael Chiesa, who will fight in the main event of the UFC’s upcoming trip to Oklahoma City. Naturally, Vick would love to fight the winner of this contest, but he also suggested he’d be willing to step into the fight on short notice, should one party get injured.

bjpenndotcom - May 18, 2017

UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson has earned the reputation as one of the most polite and well spoken UFC fighters on the roster today. Johnson, who rarely engages in any form of trash talk, seemed to really come out of his shell during a recent interview when he didn’t hesitate to give former Ronda Rousey some tough love. Rousey lost the women’s bantamweight title to Holly Holm at UFC 193 nearly two years ago, marking the first defeat of her professional career. Following the loss, it was revealed that Rousey even went as far as to momentarily consider suicide immediately following the bout. While Rousey attempted to avenge the loss be reclaiming the belt over a year later, she was handed a one sided loss from Amanda Nunes.

Tom Taylor - May 18, 2017

What a wild ride this Conor McGregor vs. Floyd Mayweather business has been. At first, the much-discussed boxing mega fight seemed like a downright impossibility; a veritable no-go. As the months have passed, however, this strange but undeniably compelling spectacle has begun to look more and more likely, as various road blocks and red tape have been bushwhacked.

Tom Taylor - May 18, 2017

While at the UFC Gym Huntington Beach grand opening, UFC Gym President Adam Sedlack went on camera to discuss the importance of staying active as you age. His only error was using former Pride champion and long-time UFC contender Dan Henderson as an example. Mid-way through his comments, Sedlack was interrupted by a jarring Henderson overhand – the legendary “H-Bomb” – which sent him careening to the mat.

Tom Taylor - May 18, 2017

Volkan Oezdemir’s story is a wild one. At the end of 2016, the Swiss light heavyweight was a relative unknown, flying under the radar of all but the most hardcore MMA fans. In early February of 2017, he defeated recent interim title challenger Ovince St. Preux by split decision in a short notice fight, usurping the number-five spot in the UFC light heavyweight rankings as a result. His was an unprecedented leap from relative obscurity into UFC light heavyweight title contention.

Russell Ess - May 17, 2017

When you step into the ring or cage to fight, you are ready to go to war and getting bloodied up usually just comes as a part of the game. However, it’s unfortunate that sometimes fighters end up with some really gruesome, devastating injuries.

bjpenndotcom - May 17, 2017

BJPENN.COM Radio is live at 8PM ET/5PM PT with a trio of future contenders! 8:15PM ET- Kicking off tonights show is the No. 5 ranked light-heavyweight and one of the athletes featured at UFC FN 109 in Sweden next week, Volkan Oezdemir. Coming off an incredible win over Ovince St. Preux back in February, Volkan has skyrocketed into the top 5 and has taken the division by storm. We’ll be previewing his upcoming bout with Misha Cirkunov and hear about Volkan’s meteoric rise in one of the UFC’s toughest divisions.