UFC - Ultimate Fighting Championship

[Fanny Batter]

I see the logic, but surely they should have just done Colby vs. Diaz next month? You get Covington a win in a hyped fight and you have him challenging on a win streak, active and with the Diaz rub. Now, the likelihood is you have Leon Edwards beating Diaz, building his name, then parking him for another year most likely. Wonderboy too. I think more likely is Edwards stopping Diaz on cuts and earning the shot, with Colby fighting the loser of this weekend's title fight. The champ's not committing to Colby if there's a chance Diaz wins as well. If it means the title's active and we get Colby in August and Leon or Wonderboy in December/January, fine.

[Nash Diesel]

What I love is how many fans were like "Oh Masvidal is scared of Colby, sitting out waiting for a title fight!" I'm sure those same fans will now backtrack and be all "Well if Jorge can do it why can't Colby?" I think even Usman and Woodley both sat and waited for their shot. It's not exactly a bad thing. See, Jorge is a million+ draw so I can see why the UFC didn't try to put him in any other fight outside the title fight. They owed him a rematch after stepping up on short notice and Usman deserves to prove that he can hug the shit out of you and not a damn thing is going to happen lol.

[Bert]

Ariel says Drakkar Klose is getting his show money but not a win bonus.

I don't see a problem with it. I also don't see a problem with Jeremy pushing him at the face off and it really just seems like a freak accident more than anything.

[Nash Diesel]

Ariel says Drakkar Klose is getting his show money but not a win bonus.

I don't see a problem with it. I also don't see a problem with Jeremy pushing him at the face off and it really just seems like a freak accident more than anything.

Exactly. A more likeable personality and nobody would be trippin about it but since it's Jeremy Stephens-I get it. I'm not saying the guy is a great human, but I just think it's one of those things like Tony Ferguson tripping on a cable and tearing his ACL the night before weigh ins.

[Mik]

When you are one of the top 3 draws in the company and you took a fight on 6 days notice against a killer like Usman, you get rewarded.

Maybe if Bobby Knuckles didn't get obliterated like a child in his title fight he might've been the first one up. Not to mention if he would be able to stay healthy long enough to make it to the fight, the guy is made of glass unfortunately.

So you're really talking about 2 totally different scenarios just to spite Masvidal. I would love to see Usman v. Wonderboy as well so hopefully Wonderboy wins becuase him against either guy for the title would be awesome. But yeah, don't throw shade on Masvidal because he put in the work to call his own shots. When you do your job for 15+ years and bring in a million viewers off the couch, you can do what the fuck you want.

Haha, you seem to think that I have a problem with Masvidal, which I don't, or that I feel particularly strongly about this, which I don't. I do like Whittaker a lot though so am definitely arguing from that slant. I'll justify it though, the reward that Masvidal got for taking the fight on 6 days notice was the title fight, which he didn't really deserve in the first place. He went on a tear, no doubt, but none of the people he beat were actual contenders in his weight division. I do agree though that if you're a draw you get more leeway, but I'm not sure whether he is a draw. He was for that one fight, no doubt. But his inactivity (both in that fight and since) might well have reduced a lot of his drawing power. I guess we'll see.

I'd argue that they both took a humbling in their fight, but Whittaker has bounced back much better having strung together 3 wins against top 10 opponents and continuing to occupy the number 1 spot. Meanwhile Masvidal has sat out, made excuses (which Wittaker didn't) and diminished his potentially small window of popularity.

Their situations are different because Adesanya doesn't really have other options, either he or Whittaker has beaten them all recently and there hasn't been any obvious growth or rivalry (with the possible exception of Vettori). Meanwhile Usman could've fought Edwards (who he hasn't fought for years and who has strung together a big win streak, or Thompson (who he hasn't fought before, who beat Masvidal handily and is off the back of two great wins against rising stars). You could even say that Covington, unfortunately, has a better case than Masvidal. Whittaker has shown growth in his last three fights, Masvidal hasn't fought.

I'd argue that Whittaker got caught being sniped by a master sniper and if he can make adjustments that he has shown he can make, that a follow up fight might be more competitive. Especially as the blueprint on beating Adesanya has been shown and Whittaker does have wrestling in his locker...and has shown it in his most recent fight. Whereas Masvidal got big brother bullied by Usman, was taken down, clinched and held, which he has shown that he is susceptible to in the past, which Usman is a master of and the only hope we have that it isn't going to happen this time around is...well this time he's had a whole training camp!

I'm looking forward to the fight, I'm hoping that Masvidal is going to be able to show some new wrinkles. I'm not especially keen on Usman as Champ because I think that he's too dominant whilst also not having a particularly fan friendly style, but in this instance I'd definitely rather have seen a different match up.

[Mik]

Exactly. A more likeable personality and nobody would be trippin about it but since it's Jeremy Stephens-I get it. I'm not saying the guy is a great human, but I just think it's one of those things like Tony Ferguson tripping on a cable and tearing his ACL the night before weigh ins.

Possibly, I don't especially like Stephens, I don't like seeing people push people when there has been no antagonising and one of their opponents is stood with their hands behind their backs. It's different if it is an aggressive face off and their are in each other's faces, or if there has been a lot of trash talking.

Dana White blaming Sean Shelby for it is classic Dana White though.

[Bert]

If you're nose to nose with someone I don't think it matters whether your hands are behind your back.

[Mik]

Whose fault is that? Klose was already there, he barely moved. Stephens came all the way across the stage to stand nose to nose with him.

I also don't agree with that. Hands behind your back is pretty much the universal sign for 'I am not starting something'.

[Bert]

Whose fault is that? Klose was already there, he barely moved. Stephens came all the way across the stage to stand nose to nose with him.

I also don't agree with that. Hands behind your back is pretty much the universal sign for 'I am not starting something'.

Jorge. Masvidal.

[Mik]

The whole point about Jorge Masvidal is that he stood with his hands behind his back to lure his opponent into thinking that he wasn’t going to start aggressively BECAUSE that is a traditionally non-aggressive stance.

[Bert]

The whole point about Jorge Masvidal is that he stood with his hands behind his back to lure his opponent into thinking that he wasn’t going to start aggressively BECAUSE that is a traditionally non-aggressive stance.

Traditionally, yes. But in UFC ever since "three piece and a soda" I don't think it's seen that way anymore.

[Mik]

I’m not sure I agree with that. I don’t think Stephens pushed him because he felt threatened, I think he pushed him because it’s an alpha male bully move. I really hope he didn’t get his show money as he was the reason the fight didn’t happen.

[Nash Diesel]

People get shoved all the fucking time, for less than what this guy was shoved for. If you're body is that soft, imagine what would've happened to the guy if he fought Stephens. I'm glad they didn't fight because I have to assume Stephens would've had a death on his hand to live with for his life.

[Mik]

I don’t buy that line of reasoning at all.

[Fanny Batter]

Anybody tipping a title change tonight? Think I'm leaning all 3 champions to retain, though I think the odds are a little wide for Valentina vs. Andrade and Usman vs. Masvidal.

Andrade is a significant step up from the dross Shevchenko has fought since she beat Joanna, battle tested in tough fights against the very best at 115 for years. She's an excellent fighter and has a chance here with her forward pressure and well rounded offence. Valentina is great but she wins when she dictates the pace of the fight so she'll have to go into the bag of tricks. Think she gets it done but will have to get through tough spots and it'll go down as her most important title defence.

Zhang vs. Rose is a tough one. We've not got much to go on with Zhang at the top level. Blew Andrade away but was a short fight where maybe she caught her cold. Beat Joanna over 5 rounds in a close, coin flip fight. Rose has done the same in the latter, and caught Joanna early in their first fight. But then we have the domination over PVZ, submission over Karate Hottie, tough 3 round win against Andrade while learning from a defeat. We know more about Rose. Zhang has more upside based on the unknown, but she could just as easily plateau. Going Zhang based on the upside, she should improve at a greater rate. But who knows?

Usman vs. Masvidal - Usman's the better fighter, but he did get buzzed 2 months ago in a fight. Turning around quickly from that is a risk. Masvidal hits hard, has a lot of weapons, knows how to stay in a fight, and therefore will have a shot in every round. But he coasts when he's losing because of that. So I've got Usman shutting him down again.

Hall knocks out Weidman doesn't he. Chris can't take a shot anymore. Might have to come from behind, but he gets it done. It's a big fight though, winner might get Brunson and a chance at the top 5.

Crute vs. Smith, Crute shuts him down I think. Smith is high offence, low defence which has a limited shelf life at the top of the sport.

Love this main card.

[Bert]

Vettori/Izzy for 263. Should have been Rob.

[OD50]

I’m going:

Usman by decision.
Rose by decision.
Bullet by decision.
Hall via (t)ko.
Crute via (t)ko.

[Bert]

I wouldn't be surprised if every fight was a decision.

[Bert]

Man this crowd is going nuts and it's only the first prelim, seats aren't even filled.

This is going to be a night to remember.

[Bert]

Holy fucking shit. What are the odds.

[Kdestiny]

Horrible

[Bert]

Holy shit. This card is fucking insane. So much for decisions.

C'mon Street Jesus.

[JuveLeo]

Thug Rose made Cro Cop proud with that finish. What a deadly left high kick!

[Kdestiny]

Makes that division very interesting at the moment

[Percussion]

Hahahahahaha

[Bert]

Goddamn. Still no decisions. Hell of a card. Nice show of respect at the end.

[Tainted Eclipse]

Honestly the most I’ve enjoyed an mma or wrestling ppv level show since the pandemic started. Awesome atmosphere

[Mik]

That card was batshit. It had everything.

[Fanny Batter]

Incredible fight card. Emotional too. Everything hits a little different with a full crowd. Usman is a monster. That Covington rematch is going to be something special, the first fight was great and they're both much improved. I've got Usman finishing him earlier and more emphatically though, he's sitting down on his shots more and if it plays out on the feet that power will show. He's knocking on the door of some pretty formidable records too, 2 off Anderson's UFC win streak for one. Pound for pound the best at the minute. Rose plays her best hits in title challenges, doesn't she? Great headkick. Valentina was dominant. Mad the full circle story with Hall, Weidman and Silva. The universe works in mysterious ways.

[Nash Diesel]

If we're categorizing by era, then Usman is the best WW for sure. He'll be up there on the Mt Rushmore with Hughes and GSP.

This was definitely a legendary card. Even down to the Weidman leg break. How insane was that? It was almost like the MMA gods were telling Weidman you can't even attack without something seriously bad happening to you. It was gruesome. The tie in with Anderson, the fact Hall was once pegged as the next Anderson Silva, plus they had fought before AND Hall has defeated Anderson as well in vicious fashion.

What's next for Bullet? Thug Rose has a very interesting fight on the horizon if Carla Esparza can pull off the win. Their story coming full circle would be incredible. I would love to tell that story one day of Carla, first ever UFC SW champion, years later challenging for that same championship now held by the person she beat. The UFC were really wanting Rose to win that TUF tournament, doing the whole Philipe Nover bs "She's the next Anderson Silva!" but she was actually living up to it.

Curious what is up for Masvidal. Nick Diaz was in the house, telling Dana he wants a fight. Not saying those 2 but I'm just sayin.....Big brother avenges little brother's ? loss.

[Mik]

I could see that happening.

Rose is a compelling champion because on her day she can beat anyone, but she's very beatable too. It's just about what kind of streak she can put together. It was a flash knockout, so I wouldn't be against an immediate rematch, but wouldn't mind seeing either of them vs Joanna again either. Great competitive fights in that division. Dern is an interesting factor in the division.

Can't see anyone doing anything to Valentina at all. I think that she's really entertaining, I can happily watch her just clear out that division methodically taking people to pieces.

Feel sorry for Weidman, but I don't mind the synchronicity. Hopefully that expedites his retirement and he doesn't get hurt again. I've never seem a less self-aware fighter so unwilling to accept or learn from defeats. He was talking up what a bad match for Adesanya he is in the build up to this fight. Can't believe he was the favourite. Really interested to see what Hall does next. His biggest problem has always seemed to be that he was gun shy, now he's put together a little win streak he should be getting a contender fight.

Seeing Usman starting to put things altogether is pretty formidable. I thought that the first round was a bad sign for him. Couldn't keep Masvidal down, was starting to throw some wild loopy punches, thought that he might be emptying the tank. Then to throw such a powerful straight that completely wiped Masvidal out was spectacular.


I saw that they had offered Whittaker the Adesanya fight first, but it was going to be a 6 week turnaround, so don't mind the Vettori rematch with Bobby Knuckles fighting the winner. Happy to see Adesanya being a fighting champion.

[Nash Diesel]

I could see that happening.

Rose is a compelling champion because on her day she can beat anyone, but she's very beatable too. It's just about what kind of streak she can put together. It was a flash knockout, so I wouldn't be against an immediate rematch, but wouldn't mind seeing either of them vs Joanna again either. Great competitive fights in that division. Dern is an interesting factor in the division.

I think calling that a flash knockout is arguable. She Cro Cop'd her and then landed quite a few unanswered shots. Joanna needs to do more, shallow division or not. Dern v. Joanna?

[Fanny Batter]

Andrade is a factor if she moves back down too, which is likely given the ragdolling Valentina gave her. There's Tatiana Suarez too. It's one of the best division's in the sport for the relative parity at the top.

[Bert]

https://www.espn.com/mma/story/_/id/...impossible-him

Nice to hear it was offered to him and he's next for the winner.

[Nash Diesel]

https://www.espn.com/mma/story/_/id/...impossible-him

Nice to hear it was offered to him and he's next for the winner.

There's not a lot of name value and depth to 185 these days. We don't have the big names from 205 dropping to 185 like we did 10 years ago. Bobby Knuckles will probably get murked again by Izzy but is Vettori wins then that's interesting.

[Mik]

I think calling that a flash knockout is arguable. She Cro Cop'd her and then landed quite a few unanswered shots. Joanna needs to do more, shallow division or not. Dern v. Joanna?

Oh by no means am I intending to discredit Rose. It just wasn't a thorough beat down that demonstrated she was levels above her opponent. Early in the fight, without a huge amount of set up or posturing she landed a fight ending blow. Not dissimilar to Andrade beating Rose and the rematch being made as Rose's next fight. Or Rose doing the same to Joanna. I'm happy with them not making the rematch and moving on. I'd also be happy with them making the rematch. I don't think that fight necessarily answered all questions for us.

I'd love to see Dern vs Joanna next, however I don't see that going well for Dern yet. Joanna is not possibly the hardest fighter to take and keep down in that division. I'd like to see her getting one more fight first. Nina was a big jump up for her. Gadelha would be an interesting test, or Waterson, even though it's fighting down the division, it would be good to see someone with a ground game and stand up and see what she can do.

Andrade is a factor if she moves back down too, which is likely given the ragdolling Valentina gave her. There's Tatiana Suarez too. It's one of the best division's in the sport for the relative parity at the top.

It looked like girl vs woman. Considering that Andrade used to fight at Bantamweight too, I was surprised that Valentina was SO much bigger than her.

There's not a lot of name value and depth to 185 these days. We don't have the big names from 205 dropping to 185 like we did 10 years ago. Bobby Knuckles will probably get murked again by Izzy but is Vettori wins then that's interesting.

If he fights the same way again against Adesanya I think it will be the same result. Even if he doesn't, it might well be the same result, but I'd be surprised if he fought the same way again.

[Nash Diesel]

I didn't realize the fight we needed at 170 was McGregor v. Covington. I never really thought about that one.

[Fanny Batter]

That's be like booking Triple H vs. JBL in 2004. Think the Diaz trilogy is a certainty with a loss against Poirier, with a win netting him a title shot against the Do Bronx vs. Chandler winner. I guess in that scenario a win against Diaz could lead to Colby... but there's Masvidal too. No short of fun build ups for Conor if he gets bounced from title contention, should he fancy it.

[Nash Diesel]

That's be like booking Triple H vs. JBL in 2004. Think the Diaz trilogy is a certainty with a loss against Poirier, with a win netting him a title shot against the Do Bronx vs. Chandler winner. I guess in that scenario a win against Diaz could lead to Colby... but there's Masvidal too. No short of fun build ups for Conor if he gets bounced from title contention, should he fancy it.

Was that back when JBL was champ because Trips didn't want to work Tuesdays? lol

I agree. Nate Diaz 3 if he loses to DP. If he wins, title shot for sure at 155.

[Bert]

Derrick Lewis vs Ngannou sounds official, probably for August. The UFC wanted June but Ngannou wanted to go home to Cameroon.

Diego pulled out of the fight with Cowboy.

Dillashaw is out of the fight with Sandhagen.

[Nash Diesel]

Derrick Lewis vs Ngannou sounds official, probably for August. The UFC wanted June but Ngannou wanted to go home to Cameroon.

Diego pulled out of the fight with Cowboy.

Dillashaw is out of the fight with Sandhagen.

I just read that about Lewis saying he's accepted the fight. You have to sell this fight as a redemption without mentioning why it's a redemption fight lol. Just show the 2-3 times their first fight looked like a fight and then show their highlights killing everyone with ease.

I'm sad it's not Jones but let's be honest. The UFC are trying everything they can not to pay fighters their worth and Derrick Lewis is already that guy who would fight for pennies on the dollar in comparison to Jones.

Also, what up with the return of Nick Diaz? What are the odds he's going to actually fight? I say the odds of Nick actually fighting are similar to the odds of seeing Chris Weidman winning the MW title again.

[Fanny Batter]

Jon's value only goes up after the Beast fight. Lewis is popular, and the difference between Ngannou/Beast and Ngannou/Jones isn't huge in terms of interest (particularly directly following the Conor PPV that will eat into profits), whereas Ngannou vs. Volkov or Gane does a fraction of that. I think Jones gets what he's after, or close to it, at the start of next year. Alternatively, Beast wins and he takes the fight cheaper because of the takedown defence.

Nick might fight again. He's in a division with sensible fights - rematches with Lawler, Diego or Condit, Cowboy Cerrone, Masvidal, Conor. If he were at 205 you can see him not getting arsed for Rakic or Cutelaba, but there's fun fights at 170. Think I'd go Lawler just for how long ago the first fight was.

[Bert]

Diaz/Khamzat was the rumored fight.

[Bert]

[OD50]

I'm thinking Nick Diaz/Jorge Masvidal is the money fight to make with Nate seemingly going for the WW title. How about Lawler/Khamzat? They clearly want to hotshot Chimaev so why not give him a legendary name to add to his resume. They are currently #14 and #15 in the rankings.

[Nash Diesel]

Guys, let's be honest, Hazmat doesn't want shit to do with good opponents. Even someone who hasn't fought in over 6 years.

Hazmat says "We'll see who is real gangster" and then crashes his gifted Benz to try and end his own career once and for all. The 3-4 times he got Covid-19 didn't do the trick so now's going all self-assisted paralysis.

Dude keeps wanting to be cosplay Khabib and then does whatever he can not to fight....

[Bert]

https://www.espn.com/mma/story/_/id/...ing-dana-white

Very strange.

Not UFC related but Yoel is out of the Bellator fight with Rumble after failing his medical exam.

[Nash Diesel]

https://www.espn.com/mma/story/_/id/...ing-dana-white

Very strange.

Not UFC related but Yoel is out of the Bellator fight with Rumble after failing his medical exam.

We have a Bellator thread.

I was coming in here to talk about the weird release of Diego Sanchez. This new guru he has with him is royally fucking shit up for him. 16 years straight, longest tenured fighter in the history of the company. Man I was realllly looking forward to his fight with Cerrone and now to hear it wasn't even a fucking injury but some oddball shit.....WEAK!

[Bert]

Diego seems like a super likely candidate for CTE and should really just retire.

[Nash Diesel]

He's been in some wars but I have to wonder if people forget he was already a weird motherfucker, that was his draw. Everyone kept picking this weirdo who ate all the asparagus and left the tips lol. I'm not saying he doesn't probably have CTE considering the fights he's had, but how much of the shit we see/hear from him is from MMA or just his weirdo mentality? Lol.

[Percussion]

How fun is Jiri..?

[Bert]

Dude is a monster but he needs to work on defense before his chin gives out. I also wonder if Jan could take him down and hold him.

[Fanny Batter]

He's a monster. A matter of time until he gets slept, but he can beat anybody in the world with that relenting pressure and power.

[Mik]

I figure that he’s probably going to get knocked out eventually. But he sure is exciting to watch.

[Fanny Batter]

They kind of need to give him another fight prior to a title shot considering Jan and Glover don't fight until September. Realistically there's him and Rakic next in line so putting them in a five rounder the week before that title fight makes too much sense, with Jiri stepping in if Glover had to pull out given the timeline and training for the championship distance. Smith vs. Ankalev co main the fight night and you're set.

Thought that event went quite well for prospects, with Gigi, Strickland and Merab looking good as well in their step ups. Chikadze getting Cub out of their with strikes was impressive, first time since Aldo did it in WEC. Featherweight is a frustrating division, possibly the most well rounded top 10 in the sport, but nobody fights! Yair and Zabit in particular. So a guy like Gigi should be rewarded with a fight against a Max Holloway simply because he puts the gloves on and fights quite frequently.

[Nash Diesel]

Cub Swanson has had such a wild career. The first time I ever saw him, choked out in like 30 seconds in WEC by Jens Pulver. There have been a few times where I was shocked he didn't step away, especially recently when he went on that 4-5 fight losing streak. Great fights though.

[Nash Diesel]

Cerrone is almost close to breaking BJ Penn's record of 7 losses in a row and still being employed by the UFC. He's 0-5-1 in his last 6 fights.

[Mik]

Shame because if it weren't for the late replacement due to sheer madness from Diego Sanchez he would've had a win here and then could've considered riding off into the sunset...which he wouldn't have done.

[Nash Diesel]

Shame because if it weren't for the late replacement due to sheer madness from Diego Sanchez he would've had a win here and then could've considered riding off into the sunset...which he wouldn't have done.

Even if he still lost, it would've been to someone like Diego. That was a dream fight for me at any stage, I've never even heard of the dude who beat Cowboy.

I mean shit...this dude is already like "I need to go back to 155" Not in the UFC. But I don't think 155 will matter. He's lost in both weight classes many times recently.

[Nash Diesel]

With Ngannou-Lewis 2 almost finalized, Dana has said that it's a strong possibility we will see Jones v. Stipe.

I dig it. Stipe wins that puts him in the trilogy with Ngannou or new blood v. Lewis. Jones wins obviously it's a step toward absolute greatness.

[Bert]

Rumble Johnson was arrested for identity theft after using a stolen credit card to buy a plane ticket. What.

[Nash Diesel]

Obviously there's way more to this story but holy shit lol. I mean, if it comes down to something as simple as this guy who at the time wasn't broke, had mad money from weed, simply stole someone's shit to buy a roundtrip ticket that was under $500?? Holy shit lol.

[Nash Diesel]

How good is UFC 262 looking?

I'm not familiar with a ton of the names but I see my boy Lando is on the bill so there's action x100. The main and co-main are going to be incredible.

[Bert]

I think it's looking pretty good. Valentina's sister is on the undercard too. I'm excited for it even though I think it's going to be Tony's swan song.

[Nash Diesel]

Tony telling Mike Chandler he has "Dana White Privilege" even made Dana piss himself. Hilarious line.

[Fanny Batter]

It's a great card. Was verging on all time great status if Edwards vs. Diaz and Edmen vs. Jack didn't fall off, but the Chandler/Do Bronx, Dariush/Ferguson and Barboza/Burgos are guaranteed firecrackers. I've got Oliveira, Dariush and Burgos, but they're all coin flips.

[Bert]

I don't think the Tony fight is a coin flip, I'd love to be wrong though. I just think he's taken too much damage.

[Fanny Batter]

He's durable and Dariush fades quite considerably. My lean is Dariush banks 2 and gets enough top control in the third to avoid getting stopped or a 10-8.

[Bert]

He's durable but if he goes into walking dead mode again like the Gateje fight the ref will stop it and should.

[Bert]

[Bert]

Does anyone have any interest in a UFC Pick 'Em? Just for fun.

ESPN has their own and you can make groups.

[Bert]

I heard Jacares arm break when it happened. Damn.

[Fanny Batter]

Crazy seeing that happen to Jacare of all people. As shocking as Big Nog back in the day.

[Percussion]

Super fun title fight.

[Kdestiny]

I heard Jacares arm break when it happened. Damn.

I watched it without the sound and somehow I still heard it

[Mik]

I heard it. It was grim.

Great title fight.

Sadly Tony is done as a top level guy, he is likely gatekeeper at best now.

[Nash Diesel]

What a great title fight.

I saw a meme that said Charles was 10-8 from like 2010-2017 and then undefeated ever since @ 9-0. That's incredible. He was my pick to win.

Very very solid card bottom to top. I think we're seeing why 155 is arguably the best division on the planet especially in the UFC.

[Bert]

I expect the winner of Poirer/McGregor fights him next.

[Nash Diesel]

I expect the winner of Poirer/McGregor fights him next.

I agree.

There are quite a few match ups that you could do for the top 5-6 guys that wouldn't suck.

[OD50]

I'd favor Poirier over Oliviera, his boxing and submission defense will serve him well. No way he runs in swinging with his chin up like Iron Mike did in round 2. Not sure about Conor, will see what version of him shows up against DP. I'm not picking nice and happy $200 million in the bank Conor against too many top LW's.

I've wanted to see Gaethje/Chandler for a while but it probably wont work out now, timing wise. How about Gaethje/RDA and Chandler/Islam in the fall if he wins against Moises?

[Nash Diesel]

I just realized that the UFC now award you $75,000 bonuses instead of $50,000. NICE!

[Bert]

I just realized that the UFC now award you $75,000 bonuses instead of $50,000. NICE!

I think that was just a Texas thing. Tony asked for a bonus bump at the pre-fight press conference because everything is bigger in Texas.

[Nash Diesel]

I think that was just a Texas thing. Tony asked for a bonus bump at the pre-fight press conference because everything is bigger in Texas.

Ohhh ok. I just thought it was something new they were going with since it seems like it's been a long, long time since they went from doing what, 20-25k bonuses up until a few years back? $75k just for Texas? I hope not.

[Nash Diesel]

Some good fights coming up on Saturday.

Font v. Garbrandt should be fun. Font merked Moraes so I'm favoring him, but Cody with that last second KO in his last fight was slick.

Esparza v. Yan=title shot? You would think so. Rose v. Esparza would be insane considering the history and Yan is another Chinese prospect from the same camp I believe as Zhang. Whatever is next for Rose I hope to Christ it's not Joanna.

[Nash Diesel]

https://www.bjpenn.com/mma-news/ufc/...0Z8QqD1idkRKwE


Luke Rockhold claims “Feminine shins” resulted in Chris Weidman breaking his leg at UFC 261

[Nash Diesel]

Jose Aldo v. Pedro Munhoz for UFC 265. This is underneath Nunes v. Pena.

Also, I don't think we have a BKF thread but Alan Belcher has come out of retirement and signed with them.

[Bert]

Good fight by Rob Font. He's a good dude. Pizza delivery guy every man to championship contender, a great story.

[Bert]

Bonuses are back to 50k. Dana White, greedy bastard.

[Nash Diesel]

He bet 20x that on Ben Askren.

[Bert]

I don't see him ever betting on Ben Askren.

[Nash Diesel]

I don't see him ever betting on Ben Askren.

He bet a million that he would beat that youtuber.

[Nash Diesel]

This guy has lost more in one night playing poker. He spent more than this on his son's 16th bday party. The guy pisses away so much money that he stopped doing his weekly show flying all over the country because he was getting heat for how little fighters were making while he's spending it on jet fuel.

[Bert]

I thought he stopped contender series because of covid?

I don't think he ever made the bet on Askren.

[Nash Diesel]

I thought he stopped contender series because of covid?

I don't think he ever made the bet on Askren.

I'm talking about the show "Lookin for a Fight" with him and Matt Serra. I think that turned into the Contender series.

I hope he didn't.

[OD50]

Bonuses are back to 50k. Dana White, greedy bastard.

It was supposed to be just a one-night thing for UFC 262. Not saying Dana isn’t a greedy bastard though.

[Bert]

Their eyes look weird on this poster.

[Bert]

It's true.

[Bert]

Dana White says they want a backup for Dustin/Connor.

I hope Gaethje gets it.

[JuveLeo]

It's true.

I would legitimately believe it was him if they said strength and conditioning coach, lol.

[Nash Diesel]

Very strong card.