On June 26, Felipe Pena is set to defend his heavyweight title on the BJJ Stars VI card, against Patrick Gaudio. The expectation of what will happen between the two world-class black belts is great, as they have already faced each other a couple of times throughout their Jiu-Jitsu careers.
In an interview with TATAME, Pena spoke on what he expects from the match and why he thinks that Gordon [Ryan] is a liar.

In regards to the main event fight on June 26, Pena said:

I believe that Saturday’s fight will be a war. I’ve already fought Patrick Gaudio several times, but he’s coming from a great evolution and improvement, so he’s coming packed… But the expectations are the best possible. I’ve been training well, the preparation was perfect, and I don’t have any injuries, something that hasn’t happened for a long time. I’m very confident in bringing this victory home.

I think it will be a fight with a lot of Jiu-Jitsu exchanges, I think Patrick’s and mine is a good match of styles, because it won’t be a very tight fight, on the contrary… For example, if I were very strong and insistent on taking another takedown, suddenly we could be headbanging there, as happens with some of his fights… So, the public can expect a fight, for sure.
[Translated from Portuguese]

To the question of: “[What] about the controversy with Gordon Ryan, what’s missing for this fight to be scheduled?” Pena answered:

This Gordon Ryan thing is simple, he’s a liar. He’s a very marketing-oriented guy and he’s at a time when he doesn’t want to fight anyone who can beat him, doesn’t want to risk losing and tarnishing this moment he’s living.
You see that he says that nobody accepts to fight him, but you see athletes, like me, for example, Lucas Hulk, Kaynan Duarte, Roberto Cyborg… Several athletes, all the time, posting that they want to fight him, but the fight doesn’t happen for a simple reason: he doesn’t want to fight. He doesn’t respond to promoters, but on the internet he lies, saying that it’s us who don’t want to fight him. That when it comes to signing a contract something happens, that he’s tired of Kaynan, that I change my mind all the time. Anyway, all lies.
[Translated from Portuguese]

Check out TATAME’s full interview with Felipe Pena here.