Exclusive MMA Interviews News
Mike Jackson back in the UFC for "shits and giggles" but expects to KO Dean Barry at UFC Vegas 52: "It will be an easier fight than the Punk fight"
Cole Shelton - April 20, 2022
Mike Jackson is back fighting again in the UFC as he will welcome Dean Barry to the promotion at UFC Vegas 52. The two were booked to fight in January and in May of 2021, but visa issues on both sides caused the fight to be scrapped. According to Jackson, this is a fight the UFC wanted to make so he wasn’t surprised when they made it for the third time.
Montana De La Rosa expects "a really entertaining fight" against Maycee Barber to steal her hype: "I'm better everywhere"
Cole Shelton - April 19, 2022
Montana De La Rosa always wanted to rebook her fight against Maycee Barber. De La Rosa and Barber were set to meet at UFC 269, but Montana was forced out of the bout with an injury. Yet, shortly after, Barber suffered a similar injury and once that happened, the hope for De La Rosa was to get the fight rebooked.
Chase Sherman details getting released from UFC to re-signing four days later to face Alexandr Romanov: "They doubled my pay"
Cole Shelton - April 19, 2022
Chase Sherman has had a whirlwind of a week, to say the least. Sherman was officially released from the UFC just four days ago, partly due to him and his manager asking for it. He says Mick Maynard wanted to keep him on the roster, but they had no fights for him so the plan was to go back to BKFC and get some fights there and then re-sign with the UFC in the future.
Maycee Barber vows to become the first person to finish Montana De La Rosa in the UFC: "I'm going out there to make a statement"
Cole Shelton - April 19, 2022
Maycee Barber is glad her fight against Montana De La Rosa got rebooked. Barber and De La Rosa were set to fight at UFC 269 back in December but De La Rosa was forced out of the fight due to an injury. Shortly after that, Barber also suffered an injury and now that they are both healthy, they will fight on Saturday night at UFC Vegas 52.
Vicente Luque details 2012 TKO win over Thiago Santos: "It was really quick"
Cole Shelton - April 15, 2022
Vicente Luque has one win on his record that may surprise some people. As Luque was 3-2-1 as a pro and struggling, he got an offer to fight Thiago Santos on three weeks’ notice in Sao Luis, Brazil. Santos, at the time, was 7-0, and although Luque didn’t know much about his opponent, he knew it was going to be a striking fight.
Drakkar Klose plans to take "weak" Brandon Jenkins into "deep waters" to get submission win at UFC Vegas 51
Cole Shelton - April 14, 2022
Drakkar Klose is excited to finally make the walk to the Octagon again. Klose is set to return to the Octagon at UFC Vegas 51 for the first time since UFC 248 in March 2020. Since then, he’s had several opponents pull out and later suffered a severe injury from a push he received from Jeremy Stephens. However, he has put that all behind him and will face Brandon Jenkins on Saturday, an opponent he believes he’s sparred with in the past.
Pro fighters make their picks for Vicente Luque vs. Belal Muhammad 2
Cole Shelton - April 14, 2022
In the main event of UFC Vegas 51, a welterweight rematch between Vicente Luque and Belal Muhammad headlines the card. Heading into the fight, Luque is a -170 favorite while ‘Remember The Name’ is a +150 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. Although these two fought back at UFC 205 with Luque winning by KO in 79 seconds, all the pros are expecting a much different fight this time around. The pros are actually lean towards the underdog in Muhammad in getting his hand raised.
Aljamain Sterling says it's "criminal" that he never got a 10-8 round against Petr Yan
Cole Shelton - April 14, 2022
Aljamain Sterling still doesn’t understand why he was such a big underdog against Petr Yan. Sterling was looking to defend his belt in the co-main event of UFC 273 against Yan in an intriguing rematch. Heading into the fight, the champ was a +300 underdog but Sterling only used that as motivation as he knew his grappling could win him the fight.
Aljamain Sterling blasts Dana White for his scorecard in rematch with Petr Yan: "Dana's always going to be throwing dirt on my name"
Cole Shelton - April 13, 2022
Aljamain Sterling wasn’t surprised when he heard Dana White thought Petr Yan beat him at UFC 273. In the co-main event of the pay-per-view card, Sterling edged out Yan by split decision to defend his belt in a highly-anticipated rematch. To many, the fight came down to the first round and White thought Yan won it which won him the fight.
Chris Barnett expects to land another "viral knockout" against Martin Buday at UFC Vegas 51: "The Taekwondo guy might have a good hand knockout"
Cole Shelton - April 13, 2022
Chris Barnett is excited to return to the Octagon and build off his last win. At UFC 268, Barnett picked up his first UFC win in highlight-reel fashion as he landed a spinning wheel kick KO against Gian Villante. Since then, Barnett says his fan base has only grown and although this is much later than he wanted to return, he is eager to face Martin Buday at UFC Vegas 51. Given that Buday beat his friend Lorenzo Hood to earn his way into the promotion, Barnett is extra motivated for this one.
Vicente Luque ecstatic for first UFC main event, believes he will finish Belal Muhammad again: "We both know I have the power to knock him out"
Cole Shelton - April 12, 2022
Vicente Luque is excited to headline his first UFC card. In the main event of UFC Vegas 51, Luque is set to rematch Belal Muhammad in a crucial fight for the welterweight division. The two fought back at UFC 205 where Luque won the fight in 79 seconds by KO. Since then, he has gone on an incredible run, but he hasn’t been the main event until now which he says is a dream come true.
Jared Vanderaa believes he could be fighting for job at UFC 273, but confident he finishes Aleksei Oleinik early
Cole Shelton - April 8, 2022
Jared Vanderaa didn’t hesitate to accept a fight against Aleksei Oleinik at UFC 273. Oleinik was supposed to face Ilir Latifi on Saturday night, but on just a weeks’ notice the Swede was forced out of the fight. When Vanderaa was offered the fight he immediately accepted it as it is his shot to get back into the win column.
Jairzinho Rozenstruik warns Marcin Tybura of his power ahead of UFC 273: "As soon as I start touching people they have big problems"
Cole Shelton - April 7, 2022
Jairzinho Rozenstruik wasn’t surprised he was booked to fight Marcin Tybura. Rozenstruik headlined a card last year against Augusto Sakai who he knocked out in brutal fashion. That same night, Marcin Tybura TKO’d Walt Harris in the evening’s co-main attraction. After the event, Tybura called for the Rozenstruik fight to happen next but instead they both got different opponents. Now, however, after they both lost their last fights, the two will meet on the UFC 273 prelims.
Korean Zombie has the power to hurt Alexander Volkanovski, will KO him within two rounds says coach
Cole Shelton - April 7, 2022
Eddie Cha, the head coach of Korean Zombie, says his pupil is looking primed and has more power than ever ahead of his UFC 273 title fight against Alexander Volkanovski. Volkanovski was originally supposed to face Max Holloway for a third time but the Hawaiian was forced out of the bout and so the UFC quickly shifted to Zombie. Once he got the fight, Cha says Zombie flew right into Arizona and did his entire camp there.
UFC 273 | Pro fighters make their picks for Gilbert Burns vs. Khamzat Chimaev
Cole Shelton - April 7, 2022
On the main card of UFC 273, a very intriguing welterweight matchup goes down as Gilbert Burns takes on the undefeated and hyped-up, Khamzat Chimaev. Heading into the fight, Burns is a +375 underdog while the Swede is a massive -510 favorite. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. While the majority of pros are picking Chimaev, some think the odds for the contest are off, believing Burns can make this is a tough fight and possibly get the win.
Ian Garry expects another highlight reel finish against Darian Weeks at UFC 273: "It won't just be an easy finish, it will be beautiful"
Cole Shelton - April 6, 2022
Ian Garry is eyeing another spectacular finish when he squares off with Darian Weeks at UFC 273 on Saturday night. Garry is set to make his sophomore Octagon appearance this weekend against Weeks. It’s an intriguing matchup but when Garry was offered the fight, he says he didn’t know who Weeks was but the one thing he does know now, is his foe is a very game opponent.
UFC 273 | Pro fighters make their picks for Aljamain Sterling vs. Petr Yan 2 title fight
Cole Shelton - April 6, 2022
In the co-main event of UFC 273, the bantamweight title is up for grabs as Aljamain Sterling rematches Petr Yan. Heading into the fight, Sterling is a +360 underdog while the interim champ is a -490 favorite. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. As seen below, many of the pros believe Yan defeats Sterling with ease in the rematch, while a select few are picking ‘Funkmaster’ to edge out the win.
Mackenzie Dern plans to make a "statement" and become the first person to finish Tecia Torres at UFC 273: "She hasn't fought someone with my ground game"
Cole Shelton - April 5, 2022
Mackenzie Dern plans to put the strawweight division on notice at UFC 273. Dern is coming off a decision loss to Marina Rodriguez in a bout which served as her first-ever main event. Before that contest, she was dealing a nagging injury but she is now fully healthy for UFC 273. She will return to the Octagon to take on Tores in a fight that has been talked about for years.