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Volkan Oezdemir discusses his rapid rise from relative unknown to top-5 light heavyweight
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 […]
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Barring injury, there’s only one thing that would stop Jorge Masvidal from fighting Tyron Woodley this July
This Saturday, on the main card of a blockbuster UFC 211, Jorge Masvidal will battle Demian Maia in what appears to be a welterweight number one contender fight. If Masvidal wins this fight and earns a title shot, of course, his title shot would pit him against an old friend and training partner in Tyron Woodley. […]
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Jorge Masvidal discusses possible title fight with former teammate Tyron Woodley
This weekend, on the main card of UFC 211, Demian Maia will risk the welterweight title shot many fans feel he has already earned when he takes on dangerous contender Jorge Masvidal. In the opinion of welterweight champion Tyron Woodley, Maia’s accepting this fight was not a smart move. The champ has now said on […]
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Jorge Masvidal is not a fan of Bisping, will “break his face” if he feels disrespected in person
Earlier this month, headlines began to surface surrounding a small beef between streaking welterweight contender Jorge Masvidal and UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping. This beef stemmed from Masvidal’s reluctance to appear on Bisping’s podcast, Believe You Me. On Wednesday’s edition of BJ Penn Radio, Masvidal explained that this beef was a bit overblown, but that he […]
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Jorge Masvidal on Demian Maia: I think I’m better than him in MMA grappling
This weekend, on the main card of the stacked UFC 211, welterweight star Jorge Masvidal will face one of the trickiest tests of his career in Demian Maia, a man widely considered the welterweight division’s number one contender. Maia’s strengths, of course, are no secret. The Brazilian is one of the best grapplers in MMA, […]
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Yoel Romero reacts to Georges St-Pierre’s announcement, says he is ready to fight under the right conditions
Last week former UFC welterweight kingpin Georges St-Pierre took to Twitter where he announced that he would be ready to fight Michael Bisping for the UFC middleweight championship any time after October. The news was not well received by most fellow fighters on the UFC’s middleweight roster, or fans and media for that matter, as […]
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Michael Johnson says his lightweight peers are avoiding tough fights, too focused on ‘money fights’
Top-10 UFC lightweight Michael Johnson has not been seen in the Octagon since November of 2016, when he succumbed to a third-round submission dealt by undefeated Dagestani star Khabib Nurmagomedov. This, however, is not for lack of trying. Having recovered from his loss to Nurmagomedov, Johnson has been eager for a return to the cage […]
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Michael Johnson on Rumble’s retirement: what he’s doing is “what every fighter wants”
Shortly after his submission loss to light heavyweight champ Daniel Cormier in the main event of UFC 210, Anthony “Rumble” Johnson announced his plans to retire from mixed martial arts. Given that Rumble remained in the prime of his career, this news came as a definite surprise to pretty much everyone. On the latest edition of […]
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Michael Johnson discusses the absences of Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov
The lightweight division is one of the most stacked divisions in the UFC. That said, things are a little chaotic in the division at the moment, as champ Conor McGregor is pursuing a boxing match with Floyd Mayweather, top contender Khabib Nurmagomedov has been sidelined with illness and religious obligations, and the fan favorite Nate […]
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“Poor Man’s Machida” Elias Theodorou explains why he’ll beat Brad Tavares
On July 7, Canadian middleweight Elias Theodorou will face a tough test in Hawaii’s Brad Tavares. The two will meet at the finale of the latest season of The Ultimate Fighter, in Las Vegas, Nevada. On the latest edition of BJ Penn Radio, Theodorou discussed this looming scrap with Tavares, and was quite complimentary of […]
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Michael Johnson questions Tony Ferguson’s contender status, is no longer willing to give him a rematch
Back in May of 2012, long-time lightweight contender Michael Johnson scored an impressive decision defeat over the highly regarded Tony Ferguson. Almost five years later, when Ferguson found himself without an opponent after Khabib Nurmagomedov’s last-minute withdrawal from UFC 209, Johnson offered him a shot at revenge. Unfortunately, Ferguson was unwilling to accept this fight […]
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Yair Rodriguez believes that “disrespectful” Frankie Edgar is the toughest fight in the featherweight division
Yair Rodriguez believes that “disrespectful” Frankie Edgar is the toughest fight in the featherweight division Surging UFC featherweight contender Yair “El Pantera” Rodriguez will return to the octagon at next month’s UFC 211 pay-per-view event in Dallas, Texas where he will square off with former UFC lightweight champion Frankie “The Answer” Edgar. Prior to his […]
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Eddie Alvarez reflects on title fight loss to Conor McGregor, plans on making a statement at UFC 211
Eddie Alvarez reflects on title fight loss to Conor McGregor, plans on making a statement at UFC 211 Former UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez will return to the octagon at May’s stacked UFC 211 pay-per-view fight card in Dallas, Texas against perennial division contender Dustin Poirier. Alvarez’s most recent octagon appearance came at UFC 205 […]
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Rory MacDonald doesn’t believe it will be “a bad thing” if his fight with Paul Daley stays standing
Rory MacDonald doesn’t believe it will be “a bad thing” if his fight with Paul Daley stays standing Former UFC welterweight title challenger Rory MacDonald will make his Bellator MMA debut at next month’s Bellator 179 event London, England when he squares off with knockout artist Paul Daley in the evenings main event. Prior to […]
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Yair Rodriguez details his post-fight conversation with BJ Penn, expects “The Prodigy” to defeat Dennis Siver
Yair Rodriguez details his post-fight conversation with BJ Penn, expects “The Prodigy” to defeat Dennis Siver Surging UFC featherweight contender Yair Rodriguez will take on former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar on the main card of next month’s stacked UFC 211 pay-per-view card in Dallas, Texas. The 24-year-old phenom recently sat down with BJPENN.com’s Chris […]
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Eddie Alvarez explains why he picked Dustin Poirier to fight at UFC 211
Eddie Alvarez explains why he picked Dustin Poirier to fight at UFC 211 One of the most exciting fighters in the history of mixed martial arts, Eddie Alvarez, will return to the octagon at next month’s highly anticipated UFC 211 event in Dallas, Texas. The former UFC lightweight champion of the world, Alvarez, recently sat […]
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Eddie Alvarez: “Frankie Edgar is nobody to be f*cked with man!”
Former UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez will return to the octagon at UFC 211 on May 13 in Dallas, Texas where he will square off with Dustin “The Diamond” Poirier. Alvarez, who trains with fellow former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar, recently sat down with Chris Taylor on BJPENN.com’s Rapid Fire segment. Taylor asked Eddie […]
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Eddie Alvarez is tired of “just winning”, plans to finish Dustin Poirier at UFC 211
Eddie Alvarez is tired of “just winning”, plans to finish Dustin Poirier at UFC 211 Former UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez will return to the octagon at next month’s stacked UFC 211 pay-per-view event in Dallas, Texas where he will square off with Dustin Poirier. Alvarez recently took some time out of his busy schedule […]
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Jimi Manuwa hopes to be on Cormier-Jones card, will be ready to replace either man
When Jimi Manuwa knocked out Corey Anderson in their March light heavyweight showdown, he established himself as one of the top contenders at light heavyweight. In fact, were it not for the looming return of former champion Jon Jones, Manuwa could well be looking at a shot at reigning champ Daniel Cormier right now. Given […]
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Mike Perry breaks down his “master plan to take over the world”
Mike Perry entered mainstream MMA consciousness in a rather strange way. Though diehard fans had been aware of him for some time, his first steps into the limelight occurred at the UFC 202 weigh ins, when he faked a handshake with his opponent Hyun Gyu Lim, then pulled his hand away at the last minute, […]
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“Untouchable” Jimi Manuwa Believes he can KO “Short, Fat Wrestler” Daniel Cormier
When Jimi Manuwa knocked out Corey Anderson in their March light heavyweight showdown, he established himself as one of the top contenders at light heavyweight. In fact, were it not for the looming return of former champion Jon Jones, Manuwa could well be looking at a shot at reigning champ Daniel Cormier right now. While […]
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‘Platinum’ Mike Perry lists Thiago Alves, several ranked welterweights as possible next opponents
Last weekend, on the main card of the UFC’s latest trip to Nashville, Tennessee, rising welterweight “Platinum” Mike Perry scored a veritable knockout of the year contender over the veteran Jake Ellenberger. This win – which marks his first over a ranked UFC welterweight – sets him up for more big tests inside the UFC […]
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Jimi Manuwa, David Haye and Dana White have spoken, Manuwa-Haye fight possible for late 2017
Shortly after his destruction of Corey Anderson, which occurred in mid-March, British UFC light heavyweight Jimi Manuwa made a surprise call for a boxing match with fellow Londoner David Haye. On Wednesday’s edition of BJ Penn Radio, Manuwa explained the reason for this callout. “I just think it would be a great fight,” Manuwa told […]
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Rory MacDonald cracks open on the possibility of fighting in the UFC again
Bellator MMA has picked up a few of the UFC’s high-ranked fighters including former UFC welterweight challenger Rory MacDonald. MacDonald is set to make his Bellator MMA debut against knockout artist Paul Daley in Bellator 179’s main event on May 19 at the SSE Arena in London. Speaking with BJPenn.com’s Chris Taylor on a recent […]
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Rory MacDonald: Tyron Woodley being UFC champ makes me look better
Having defended the welterweight title twice – albeit in two close fights with the same man – UFC welterweight titleholder Tyron Woodley is looking like he could emerge as a pretty dominant champion. We do, however, know that he can be beaten. Rory MacDonald was the most recent fighter to prove this. MacDonald beat Woodley […]
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Nate Quarry explains why UFC contracts are so dangerous for fighters: they own you
Though the UFC is the biggest and most popular mixed martial arts promotion in the world, it is often criticized for the way it treats its fighters. The promotion frequently catches flack for underpaying it’s athletes, and for its controversial outfitting deal with Reebok, which seems to pay fighters much less than they’d make if […]
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Ian McCall: There’s something wrong inside of me, I can’t cut weight anymore
To say UFC flyweight Ian McCall has been unlucky of late would be an understatement. Since he last fought in January of 2015, he has been scheduled to fight five separate times, and not one of these scheduled fights has come to fruition. Though several of these cancelled fights have been due to opponent injuries […]
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MMA veteran Nate Quarry rips “greedy, selfish” UFC over Reebok deal
Nate Quarry, who is a TUF veteran and former UFC middleweight title challenger, is involved in a class action lawsuit against the UFC, and stands out as one of the promotion’s most outspoken critics. One of the issues that gets the former fighter most fired up is the UFC’s outfitting deal with sports apparel giant […]