-
EXCLUSIVE | Jessica Penne and the journey to self-discovery
As not all heroes wear capes, not all heroes are perfect, but they don’t always have to be. In the grueling world of combat sports and as is the case with every sport at the highest professional level, the magnitude of each and every setting gets magnified to the broadest possible audience with the more […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Mike Winkeljohn explains why Holly Holm isn’t fighting at UFC 235
At UFC 235, Holly Holm was expected to return to the bantamweight division to take on a rising undefeated prospect in Aspen Ladd. However, at the UFC 235 pre-fight press conference, UFC President Dana White announced that the fight was off. That left many wondering if one of the fighters was hurt or if Holm […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Dan Lambert details the rise of American Top Team
Arguably the best gym in the sport of MMA is American Top Team (ATT). The gym is the home of Joanna Jedrzejczyk, Colby Covington, Amanda Nunes, Dustin Poirier, Nina Ansaroff, and countless other champions and top contenders. When Dan Lambert first started the gym, he didn’t think it would get as big as it has. […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | TUF 28 Finalist Justin Frazier cut by the UFC
Justin Frazier’s cinderella story appears to have struck midnight. Frazier was on The Ulitmate Fighter 28 in which he was the last overall pick as a heavyweight. Despite having appeared out of shape during his entrance on the show, one thing we quickly found out was that he could indeed fight. Frazier ended up joining […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Pro fighters make their picks for Robert Whittaker vs. Kelvin Gastelum
Robert Whittaker is set for the first defense of his middleweight title in the main event of UFC 234. Whittaker is riding a nine-fight winning streak, while also being undefeated since he moved up to middleweight. Standing in his way will be first-time title challenger Kelvin Gastelum, who is riding a two-fight winning streak. Ahead […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Ricky Simon looks to launch into the rankings with UFC 234 win
Ricky Simon is going to have his biggest fight, and his biggest exposure to date at UFC 234. The 26-year-old will be fighting on the main card where he is taking on craft veteran Rani Yahya. Simon is currently riding a seven-fight winning streak and will have the chance to fight a ranked fighter for […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Pro fighters make their picks for Israel Adesanya vs Anderson Silva
The UFC’s first pay-per-view of 2019 will go down in Melbourne, Australia and be topped by a middleweight title fight between Robert Whittaker and Kelvin Gastelum. However, arguably the fight most fans are looking forward to is the co-main event where rising superstar Israel Adesanya will take on former champion Anderson Silva. Ahead of this […]
-
Isaac Vallie-Flagg’s Lifelong Fight
Isaac Vallie-Flagg was driving across the mesa outside Rio Rancho, New Mexico when the lights of a police cruiser started flickering in his rear-view mirror. The former UFC and Strikeforce fighter was pulled over for driving with tags that didn’t match his vehicle, and minutes later, was arrested for a number of far more serious charges. That was on January 18, 2018. Now, just over a year […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Dan Lambert says Joanna Jedrzejczyk hasn’t decided what division to fight in next
Joanna Jedrzejczyk used to be the UFC strawweight champ, and for a long period of time, it didn’t look like anyone could beat her. However, Rose Namajunas eventually came along and beat Jedrzejczyk in back-to-back fights, putting an end to the Polish star’s reign. Once Jedrzejczyk was no longer the strawweight champion, some fans began […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Dan Lambert discusses the options for Dustin Poirier’s next fight
Ever since moving up to lightweight in 2015, Dustin Poirier has been unstoppable. He is 8-1 with one no-contest, with the majority of his wins coming by way of stoppage and in main event spots. However, while his resume looks impressive, Poirier has still yet to fight for the UFC lightweight title. Instead, he has […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Dan Lambert gives update on Colby Covington
At UFC 235 Tyron Woodley will defend his welterweight title. However, it will not be against Colby Covington, rather he will take on Kamaru Usman. To many, the news was surprising given Covington was the interim welterweight champion and seemed to be next in line. But, according to American Top Team owner Dan Lambert, Covington […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Born to be a fighter, Justin Willis ready to shine against Curtis Blaydes
For Justin Willis, fighting isn’t a sport, it’s not just a paycheck, it’s life and it’s something he was made for. Fighting is in his blood, it’s what he grew up on, and it’s made him exactly who he is today; a rising contender in the UFC’s heavyweight division. Holding a professional record of 8-1 […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Max Griffin not happy ‘piece of s**t’ Mike Perry has gotten bigger fights than him
In February of 2018 at UFC on FOX 28, fan favorite welterweight Mike Perry fought Max Griffin. Many expected Perry to beat Griffin, however, that was not the case. Griffin ended up surprising many by defeating Perry by unanimous decision in Perry’s hometown of Orlando. However, since this fight, Perry has gotten the bigger fights, […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Anthony Hernandez is ready for his debut at UFC Fortaleza
Anthony Hernandez has been waiting for this. Hernandez will be making his UFC debut at UFC Fortaleza in just a few days. The undefeated middleweight knew this day would come and now it is rapidly approaching. However, Hernandez should have already made his debut. He was scheduled to fight Markus Perez at UFC 233, but […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Jessica Andrade: Gold hunter on a warpath
‘Excitement’. Three syllables and a noun. Everybody loves something that causes them the feeling of excitement. It’s a great emotion, really. The possibilities are endless when it comes to what can trigger it. For many people around the world, a sport can be one of those things. It doesn’t matter what it is, if you […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Raphael Assuncao plans to stake claim to title shot with second win over Marlon Moraes
At UFC Fortaleza, the main and co-main events will feature fights between two Brazilians. However, the main event spot between Raphael Assuncao and Marlon Moraes is a rematch of fight at UFC 212 in 2017. Since then, Assuncao has gone 2-0 and is most likely the number one contender given Dominick Cruz is hurt and […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Max Griffin is fired up for his UFC Fortaleza fight with Thiago Alves
UFC Fortaleza is just days away, and the card is looking like a good one. On the card will be former UFC welterweight title challenger, Thiago Alves taking on Max Griffin. For Griffin, this is the kind of fight he wants after losing his last fight to Curtis Millender. “I’m excited man, I wanted this […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | For Renato Moicano, fighting Jose Aldo ‘means everything’
Renato Moicano is a rising star in the UFC’s featherweight division. He’s been with the UFC since 2014 and has gone 5-1 during that time with his only loss coming against Brian Ortega. Since the loss to Ortega, Moicano defeated Calvin Kattar and Cub Swanson to then become the backup fighter for the UFC 231 […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Anthony Pettis believes he would have finished Tony Ferguson if he didn’t break his hand
All the hype surrounding UFC 229 was about Conor McGregor taking on Khabib Nurmagomedov. However, the co-main event fight between Anthony Pettis and Tony Ferguson was also a highly touted affair. It appeared the winner of Ferguson vs Pettis would be getting the next title shot against the winner of Nurmagomedov-McGregor. Ultimately, Ferguson defeated Pettis […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Din Thomas discusses Tyron Woodley’s plans for 2019
Current welterweight champion Tyron Woodley seems to have a planned scheduled for 2019, including his next title defense against Kamaru Usman at UFC 235 on March 2 in Las Vegas. While many expected Woodley’s next title defense to come against bitter rival Colby Covington, the champion accepted Usman without hesitation. Although he still plans on […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Din Thomas doesn’t believe Amanda Nunes will fight at featherweight again
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 […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Javier Mendez gives his thoughts on what is next for Daniel Cormier
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 […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Anthony Pettis explains why he is moving up to 170
Anthony Pettis used to be the UFC lightweight champion, and also fought at featherweight in 2016. However, his first fight in 2019 will be at welterweight, where he will take on former title challenger, Stephen Thompson. For Pettis, moving up to 170 to fight ‘Wonderboy’ was an easy decision. “Honestly, at 155 I practically fought […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Elias Theodorou seeks to strike cannabis from USADA banned substance list
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. “It is because the […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Pro fighters make their picks for TJ Dillashaw vs. Henry Cejudo
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 […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Elias Theodorou willing to fight Derek Brunson after being called out
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 […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Allen Crowder makes bold prediction for bout with Greg Hardy
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 […]
-
EXCLUSIVE | Mike Winkeljohn talks starting JacksonWink and becoming a top gym in MMA
When Mike Winkeljohn and Greg Jackson first teamed up to start an MMA gym in Albuquerque, New Mexico, neither man ever dreamed it would become one of the top camps in the sport. Today, JacksonWink is not only considered a top gym in MMA, but both Winkeljohn and Jackson are considered elite coaches in the […]