Exclusive MMA Interviews News

Cole Shelton - April 2, 2020

One of the biggest questions in all of MMA is who is the GOAT? Is it someone who had the biggest impact on the sport or the person who won the most? It’s an interesting debate for fighters and fans alike to have at any time. So, with little to no MMA on for the foreseeable future, BJPENN.com reached out to several current and former middleweights to ask who their divisional GOAT is. To no surprise, the vast majority picked Anderson Silva.

Mike Pendleton - April 2, 2020

Currently riding a five-fight win streak and ranked inside the top-15 in the UFC’s featherweight division, Dan Ige is only looking to the top as he moves forward. Yet Ige knows he’s got more to prove as he continues on his journey to become featherweight champion. In an exclusive interview with BJPenn.com, Ige discussed who he’d like to face next in the division, and he’s looking at the newly re-signed Shane Burgos. Ige says he believes a fight with Burgos is one that will definitely entertain fans.

Cole Shelton - April 1, 2020

One of the biggest questions in all of MMA is who is the GOAT? Is it someone who had the biggest impact on the sport or the person who won the most? It’s an interesting debate for fighters and fans alike to have at any time. So, with little to no MMA on for the foreseeable future, BJPENN.com reached out to several current and former welterweights to ask who their divisional GOAT is.

Mike Pendleton - April 1, 2020

With the COVID-19 pandemic affecting the entire sports world, fighters, managers, and coaches alike in the combat sports world are having to adjust to these difficult times. For one UFC fighter, featherweight Dan Ige, having to adjust as a fighter is just part of it, as he’s also a manager for other UFC fighters. Most recently, Ige defeated Mirsad Bektic at UFC 247 in February, which extended his winning streak to five in the featherweight division. That streak has also landed Ige in the top-15 rankings for his division, and in an exclusive interview with BJPenn.com, “Dynamite Dan” discussed how he feels lucky to have gotten his fight in before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down events.

Tom Taylor - March 31, 2020

Demetrious Johnson is gearing up for a May 29 fight with ONE flyweight champ Adriano Moraes: a deadly Brazilian jiu-jitsu specialist with power to boot. Needless to say, this would be an opportune time for Johnson call on his long-time friend and training partner, ONE bantamweight champ Bibiano Fernandes, who bears many stylistic similarities to Moraes. Unfortunately, Johnson and Fernandes will probably be unable to reach one another anytime soon. Living in Bellevue, Washington and Vancouver, B.C respectively, they’re only about 120 miles apart as the crow flies. Yet they’re also separated by the US-Canada border, which has become an almost insurmountable hurdle in the time of the coronavirus.

Cole Shelton - March 31, 2020

One of the biggest questions in all of MMA is who is the GOAT? Is it someone who had the biggest impact on the sport or the person who won the most? It’s an interesting debate for fighters and fans alike to have at any time. So, with little to no MMA on for the foreseeable future, BJPENN.com reached out to several current and former lightweights to ask who their divisional GOAT is. The majority believe it is Khabib Nurmagomedov but the likes of Tony Ferguson, BJ Penn, Frankie Edgar and Conor McGregor are in the discussion.

Cole Shelton - March 30, 2020

One of the biggest questions in all of MMA is who is the GOAT? Is it someone who had the biggest impact on the sport or the person who won the most? It’s an interesting debate for fighters and fans alike to have at any time. So, with little to no MMA on for the foreseeable future, BJPENN.com reached out to several current and former featherweights to ask who their divisional GOAT is. The majority believe it is Jose Aldo but it is a three-person race between the Brazilian, Max Holloway and Conor McGregor.

Cole Shelton - March 27, 2020

One of the biggest questions in all of MMA is who is the GOAT? Is it someone who had the biggest impact on the sport or the person who won the most? It’s an interesting debate for fighters and fans alike to have at any time. So, with little to no MMA on for the foreseeable future, BJPENN.com reached out to several current and former bantamweights to ask who their divisional GOAT is. The majority believe it is Dominick Cruz, but had T.J. Dillashaw not been suspended for PEDs he might’ve been giving the nod.

Cole Shelton - March 26, 2020

Artem Lobov believes his teammate and friend, Conor McGregor deserves the chance to rematch Khabib Nurmagomedov. McGregor and Nurmagomedov fought back at UFC 229 where the lead up to the fight was intense. The rivalry was heated and after the submission win by Nurmagomedov, a post-fight melee took place.

Mike Pendleton - March 26, 2020

With the future of UFC events in April up in the air due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, fighters are awaiting word on what’s next. While Dana White’s attention has been focused on making UFC 249 the best possible event they can make it, there other fighters awaiting word on their events. One of those fighters, Anthony Smith, is scheduled to face Glover Teixiera in the main event of UFC Lincoln on April 25. In an exclusive interview with BJPenn.com, Smith discussed the uncertainty surrounding his fight and explains why he as a fighter, needs to keep fighting despite the pandemic. As far as the status of his fight happening in his hometown Lincoln, Nebraska, Smith says the situation is up in the air right now.

Cole Shelton - March 26, 2020

One of the biggest questions in all of MMA is who is the GOAT? Is it someone who had the biggest impact on the sport or the person who won the most? It’s an interesting debate for fighters and fans alike to have at any time. So, with little to no MMA on for the foreseeable future, BJPENN.com reached out to several current and former flyweights to ask who their divisional GOAT is. To no surprise, the majority gave the nod to Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson for his reign atop the UFC flyweight division for years.

Cole Shelton - March 25, 2020

Artem Lobov says he nearly signed with KSW before the COVID-19 pandemic halted negotiations. Lobov is currently a free agent and is looking to sign a non-exclusive contract so he can fight in MMA, boxing, and bare-knuckle fighting. While looking for that, “The Russian Hammer” says KSW was showing a ton of interest and they were getting ready to sign a bout agreement until the pandemic practically shut the world down.

Mike Pendleton - March 25, 2020

After having his fight against Leon Edwards postponed, former welterweight champion Tyron Woodley had other potential opponents willing to step in on short-notice for a fight. Unfortunately, none materialized, as the UFC officially postponed the UFC London event due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With Colby Covington and Gilbert Burns both throwing their names into the hat to face Woodley, it seemed as though the former champion has moved on from Leon Edwards and shifted focus to facing Covington as the two have a long-standing rivalry between them.

Cole Shelton - March 24, 2020

Renato Moicano isn’t pleased with the way he handled himself following his win at UFC Brasilia. Moicano was moving up to lightweight after back-to-back losses and quickly submitted Damir Hazdovic in under a minute. Following the win, you could hear the Brazilain complaining on the broadcast as he wanted to fight longer given he was at home and wanted to really see how his body would do at lightweight.

Mike Pendleton - March 24, 2020

Francis Ngannou entered the UFC in 2015 just five fights into his professional career, and skyrocketed throughout the division due to his performances inside the Octagon. In just over two years upon entering the UFC, Ngannou would go on a six-fight winning streak which would lead him to get a title shot against Stipe Miocic. Although he would come up short in his attempt at UFC gold, Francis Ngannou showed he could still hang with the very best heavyweights in the world. Following his fight against Miocic, Ngannou would drop his second consecutive fight in a lackluster showing against Derrick Lewis, and then change followed shortly thereafter.

Cole Shelton - March 24, 2020

Gilbert Burns knew he would become just the second person ever to finish Demian Maia but he expected to do it by submission. In the co-main event of UFC Brasilia, Burns was battling Maia in a very important welterweight clash. There, he was fighting in front of no fans which he admits was quite hard to deal with.

Tom Taylor - March 20, 2020

Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) is one of countless sports organizations to be adversely affected by the coronavirus pandemic that is currently sweeping the planet, having already been forced to postpone two events. Suffice it to say that it’s been a hectic few weeks for company president David Feldman, who is doing his best to guide the organization through these times of danger and uncertainty.

Cole Shelton - March 20, 2020

Jimi Manuwa is still interested in becoming a professional boxer. The former UFC light heavyweight retired last summer but recently said he is interested in a return to the Octagon. But, if that does not happen, the Englishman says he would like to box.